ABSTRACT
This volume, fourth in the series ‘Plants of Central Asia’, is wholly devoted to the family Gramineae, which represents one of the largest and economically most important families of flowering plants. A study of the vast herbarial collection preserved in the herbaria of the V.L. Komarov Botanical Institute, Academy of Sciences, USSR, and the literature available showed that Central Asia outside the USSR, covered in this publication, is represented by 74 genera and 354 species of this family, being clearly second only to the family Compositae in this respect. This number would greatly swell were the genera and species of grasses from the part of the USSR which, according to V.l. Grubov, falls in the Central Asian subregion of the Mediterranean (see map 1, vol. 1, p. 12 * ) included. The part of Kazakhstan falling in this subregion alone would raise the above numbers by 95 species and 11 genera (Imperata Cyr., Eriochloa H.B.K., Leersia Sw., Apera Adans., Arundo L., Molinia Schrank, Sclerochloa Beauv., Scolochloa Link, Pholiurus Trin., Henrardia C.E. Hubb. and Aegilops L).
