A spikelet is a small unit of the inflorescence of a grass, containing one or more florets on a short axis. Usually a pair of glumes occurs at the base, and each floret is associated with a lemma and palea.[ref]
This hierarchy matters when counting. An apparent “grain-bearing unit” can be a spikelet with several flowers, so counting spikelets is not generally the same as counting flowers or mature seeds. To inspect one, separate the basal glumes and then examine the individual florets inside. The nested organization links a recognizable cereal head to the reproductive structures of other angiosperms.
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