Prairie bulrush

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Prairie bulrush leaves

Prairie bulrush

Prairie bulrush inflorescence and bracts

Prairie bulrush habit

Prairie bulrush inflorescence and bracts

Prairie bulrush

Morphology

Culm

Erect, sharply triangular, 1/4 to 3/4 inch thick at base.

Leaves

Several, scattered along lower two-thirds of culm, up to 1/2 inch wide, v-shaped.

Sheath

None

Ligule

Truncate.

Inflorescence

Clusters of spikelets, usually 2-15, terminal; subtended by several involucral bracts, leaflike, ascending or spreading, 4 to 8 inches long.

Flower

Ovoid to ovoid-cylindric, 1/2 to 1 inch long, 1/4 to 1/5 inch wide, pale brown, usually all sessile or some sessile and some stalked; scales egg-shaped, minutely pubescent; margins thin; tip notched; awn short.

Spikelet

None

Fruit

Achene, egg-shaped, pale brown, short-beaked, less than 1/6 inch long; style 2-cleft.

Ecology

Habitat

Marshes, pond margins, and intermittently wet areas; moist alkaline and saline sites; sandy, silty loam, or fine clayey soils.

Distribution

West 2/3 of Kansas.

Reproduction

None

Practical Information

Toxicity

None

Forage Value

None

Uses

Native Americans used the seeds for food and plant fibers in the making of baskets, mats, and sandals. Prairie bulrush is sometimes used for erosion control in constructed wetlands. Waterfowl use the plants for cover and eat the seeds.

Additional Notes

Synonyms

Alternative scientific names that have been used for this plant.