Sword grass
Encyclopedia
Sword grass is a name used for some species of grasses
with blades that are sharp enough to cut human skin. This is because they contain many silica phytolith
s, a hardening material in many plants. The sharp blades help to discourage herbivores from grazing, protecting the grasses around it as well.
Poaceae
The Poaceae is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of flowering plants. Members of this family are commonly called grasses, although the term "grass" is also applied to plants that are not in the Poaceae lineage, including the rushes and sedges...
with blades that are sharp enough to cut human skin. This is because they contain many silica phytolith
Phytolith
Some plants can take up silica in the soil, whereupon it is deposited within different intracellular and extracellular structures of the plant. After these plants decay, silica is redeposited in the soil in the form of phytoliths , which are rigid, microscopic structures of varying sizes and shapes...
s, a hardening material in many plants. The sharp blades help to discourage herbivores from grazing, protecting the grasses around it as well.