Readers of the new book, “Field Guide to the Common Grasses
of Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska” by KNPS board member, Iralee Barnard, will
expand their knowledge and identification skills to the beautiful array of this
important adaptive grass family.
Iralee adds a blend of ecological and cultural contextual information
with her identification steps so the novice and expert alike will not only be
able to recognize and identify the grasses so abundant in our natural landscape
but to do so with an interesting diversity of complimentary information about
each grass species.
Only two of every ten species of the heartland’s 3,000
species of wild plants are grasses yet these grasses can account for 90% of the
ground cover. Seventy of the most common
grass species are included with 415 color photographs revealing details not
found in previous grass identification field guides.
Iralee’s artistic ability coupled with her extensive
botanist background has influenced this unique field guide format. Clear descriptions, a “finding list” system
using flowering heads, leaf details with size comparisons and whole mature
plant color pictures help the reader systematically walk through the
identification process.
An Illustrated glossary, leaf comparison sections and table
of grass flowering dates provide additional information for recognizing and
identification. Descriptions focus on the primary characteristics of each
species and are accompanied by distribution maps.
Iralee exemplifies KNPS members by her book dedication
remarks,
This book is dedicated to all who
love the outdoors and learning. May your path be interesting and filled with
pleasure in all seasons.
Treat yourself to a field companion you will not want to be
without. Now available in local and online book suppliers. ISBN
978-0-7006-1945-0 University Press of Kansas, 2014.
