The species Montrichardia linifera (Arruda) Schott, M. arborescens (L.) Schott and M. arborescens varo aculeata (Meyer) Engler, popularly known as aninga, are typical of flooded areas and have aerial and subterranean stems. In order to know the morphological and anatomical structures and the fibrous potential of the stem of these species, freehand sections were made (fresh material), in a rotating microtome (material fixed in F.A.A.) and stained in Astrablau and Safranin. The stem was sectioned at the 3rd and 4th node for young individuals (1 and 2 leaves) and for adults in the apical, basal region and in the rhizome in the proximal region of the aerial stem. The epidermis is uniseriate with cells of various shapes, outer periclinal walls with lignin deposition, presence of cuticle, tannin idioblasts, and numerous lenticels in adult individuals. The cortex, in young individuals and in the apical regions of adults, has parenchymal cells with evident intercellular spaces, numerous amphivasal and amphiphysial bundles and reduced aerenchyma displaced to the central region. In adults, both the cortical and vascular tissue in the basal region are reduced. The cortex consists of 3 to 4 layers of chlorenchyma and evident diaphragms. The vascular tissue is formed by collateral bundles with sclerenchymatic sheaths. The formation of aerenchyma with diaphragm and the reduction of vascular tissue and its fibers are of lysigenous origin in the species under study, characteristics observed by Sculthorpe (1985) and Fahn (1985) in plants of aquatic environment.
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