Juncus effusus ssp. effusus
pasture rush, soft rush
2.2–4.9 mm diameter above distal sheath, with solid pith.
proximal sheaths papillose (at 10×);
distal sheaths green to light brown distally, often with dark-banded margins, 6–14(15) cm, overlapping except the distal 2–4 cm, clasping stems, papillose or not;
apices symmetrical; thin, unwinged.
often congested, usually 1–5 cm.
tepal tips in fruit spreading or curving (erect if cluster is very dense and head-like).
=42.
Juncus effusus ssp. effusus
Wet pastures, shores, swales, springs, ditches. 0–1100 m. Col, CR, Est, Lava, WV. CA, ID, WA; north to AK, widely scattered across North America, Central America, South America; North Africa, East Asia, southwestern Asia, Australia, Europe, New Zealand. Exotic.
This taxon is a common introduction often mistaken for native Juncus effusus ssp. pacificus in pastures as well as horticultural and restoration settings. Our native subspecies differs in its dark sheaths with a winged, thickened and asymmetrical apex; ssp. effusus has green sheaths often with a dark margin, and a symmetrical thin unwinged apex. Another introduction, ssp. solutus, has longer sheaths, a larger inflorescence, and appressed tepals in fruit; ssp. effusus has sheaths less than 15 cm, a variable but often small and dense inflorescence, and the tepals tend to spread or curve away from the ripe capsules.
Peter Zika
- Local floras:
BC, 
CA, 
OR, 
WA - Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos,
Flora NW, 
PNW Herbaria 
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist (observations)
USDA Plants Database- LBJ Wildflower Center
- SEINet
- Plants of the World Online
- Encyclopedia of Life
- Wikipedia
- Google Image Search
