Scutellum (botany)

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The scutellum is part of the structure of a barley seed - the modified seed leaf.

The scutellum (from the latin scutella meaning "small shield") can also refer to the equivalence of a thin cotyledon in monocots (especially members of the grass family). It is very thin (high surface area), and serves to absorb nutrients from the endosperm during germination.^[1]