a class of vegetation dominated by nonwoody plants known as herbs (graminoids, forbs, and ferns) —note 1. herbs generally form at least 25 percent cover; trees, shrubs and dwarf shrubs generally have less than 25 percent cover —note 2. in rare cases, herbaceous cover exceeds the combined cover of trees, shrubs, dwarf shrubs, and nonvascular plants and is less than 25 percent cover —note 3. height classes for the graminoids are short (< 0.5 m or 1.6 ft), medium-tall (0.5 to 1 m, or 1.6 to 3.3 ft) and tall (> 1 m or 3.3 ft); height classes for the forbs are low (< 1 m or 3.3 ft) and tall (> 1 m or 3.3 ft) —note 4. for both graminoids and forbs, the height classes are measured when the inflorescences are fully developedThis definition last updated 10/28/2008