Abstract: Shibataea Makino is a genus of Subfam. Bambusoideae, with 8 species, distributed in Southeast China and Southwest Japan. In China wild plants of the genus are found in Fujian, Jiangxi, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Anhui provinces, especially in Fujian and Zhejiang. The genus is also cultivated in parks of Guangzhou, Teibei and some other gardens. Raches of inflorescences in genera Semiarundinaria, Brachystachyum, Phyllostachys and Shibataea have many branches, even secondary branches. A large bract is often present at the base of each branch, and a prophyll in the axil of the bract in Tribe Shibataeeae Nakai. Moreover, an inflorescence is composed of numerous dense spikelets. This type of inflorescence may be considered primitive. The genera Indosasa and Sinobambusa are of more stamens (6 in the former and 3 or 4, 5 in the latter) than in the genera Semiarundinaria and Brachystachyum (only 3), and their inflorescences are very simple with fewer spikelets and raches,without the large bract. This type of inflorescence may be considered more advanced.

Key words: Shibataeae, Shibataea