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bulbous rush, spreading rush

Habit Plants perennial, sometimes flowering in the first year, 1–30 cm tall, cespitose, sometimes tuberous at nodes, stems sometimes prostrate, trailing, stoloniferous, rooting at nodes, upper nodes sometimes forming leafy bulblets.
Leaves

round; hollow or several-chambered, septate at least in part;

auricles 1–2 mm.

Inflorescences

open; (2)6–16 clusters; clusters 2–12-flowered;

flowers often forming leafy bulblets.

Flowers

tepals 6, 1.8–3.4 mm, green, red, or brown (dark brown);

inner tepal margins flat;

tips usually blunt, hooded;

stamens (3)6;

filaments 0.6–1 mm; longer than or equaling anthers;

anthers 0.2–0.8 mm;

styles 0.2–0.5 mm.

Capsules

usually 0.1–0.4 mm longer than or equaling tepals, brown to dark brown, abruptly tapered to apices; blunt or acute, 1-chambered.

Seeds

ellipsoid to ovoid, 0.4–0.6 × 0.2–0.25 mm, apiculate.

2n

=40.

Juncus bulbosus

Distribution
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Damp grassy disturbed ground, lakeshores. 0–50 m. Est. CA, WA; north to British Columbia, northeastern Canada and NY; Australia, Europe, Mauritius, New Zealand. Exotic.

This species is uncommon but can invade natural wetland systems. The capsule is rounded at the tip, differing from the acute to acuminate capsules of J. supiniformis. Juncus supiniformis capsules are more than 1 mm longer than the tepals. Juncus articulatus is coarser and has capsules more exserted than J. bulbosus.

Source Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 273
Peter Zika
Sibling taxa
J. acuminatus, J. anthelatus, J. articulatus, J. balticus, J. bolanderi, J. brevicaudatus, J. breweri, J. bryoides, J. bufonius, J. canadensis, J. capillaris, J. capitatus, J. compressus, J. confusus, J. conglomeratus, J. covillei, J. diffusissimus, J. drummondii, J. dudleyi, J. effusus, J. ensifolius, J. ensifolius x Juncus nevadensis, J. exiguus, J. falcatus, J. filiformis, J. gerardi, J. hemiendytus, J. hesperius, J. howellii, J. inflexus, J. interior, J. kelloggii, J. laccatus, J. lescurii, J. longistylis, J. marginatus, J. mertensianus, J. mexicanus, J. nevadensis, J. occidentalis, J. orthophyllus, J. oxymeris, J. parryi, J. patens, J. pelocarpus, J. planifolius, J. ranarius, J. regelii, J. saximontanus, J. supiniformis, J. tenuis, J. tiehmii, J. torreyi, J. triglumis, J. trilocularis, J. uncialis
Synonyms Juncus supinus
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