Cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin are the main cell wall components of straw. After removal of the wax and the major portion of lignin, the remaining components of the cell wall surface of straw were determined by atomic force microscopy, which revealed a network structure of cellulose and hemicellulose, and some lignin localized on the surface of the network, consistent with the cell wall model suggested by other researchers. (C) 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.