Don't forget sugarcane. Sugar is *everywhere.* Another biggie is
sorghum. While some varieties are people-food, an awful lot more is
cattle fodder.
As for non-grass, it's likely either the potato or the soybean. It
depends on how you define economically important--moneywise, or
number-of-people-deriving-nutrition-wise. Much of what is grown is
eaten without being sold.
M. Reed
"Bohmfalk, John" wrote:
>> Two different botany texts state that "Nine of the ten most economically
> important plants are grasses.", but neither text identifies all nine of
> them. They do identify wheat, rice, corn, barley, millet, oats and rye.
> What are the other two? Also, which non-grass is in the top ten? Is it
> potato?
>> Thanks.
>> John
>> Dr. John Bohmfalk
> Biology Department
> Hastings College
> Hastings, NE
>jbohmfalk at hastings.edu> (402) 461-7470
>> ____________________
> "Take interest, I implore you, in those sacred dwellings called
> laboratories. Demand that they be multiplied, that they be adorned. These
> are the temples of the future, temples of well-being and of
> happiness."—Louis Pasteur
>> ---
