Juncus arcticus |
Juncus xiphioides |
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arctic rush |
iris-leaf rush |
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Habit | Herbs, perennial, 2–10 dm. | Herbs, perennial, rhizomatous, 5–9 dm. | ||||||||
Rhizomes | long- creeping. |
2–3 mm diam. |
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Culms | erect, 1–3 mm diam. |
erect, 2–6 mm diam. |
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Cataphylls | several. |
0 or 1–2, straw-colored, apex narrowly acute. |
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Leaves | blade usually absent (present in var. mexicanus). |
basal 1–3, cauline 2–6, straw-colored; auricles absent; blade 10–40 cm x (3–)7–12 mm. |
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Inflorescences | lateral, 3–many-flowered, loose to congested; primary bract barely exceeding to many times longer than inflorescence. |
panicles or racemes of 20–50 heads, 2–14 cm, erect or ascending branches; primary bract erect; heads 15–70-flowered, obovoid to globose, 7–11 mm diam. |
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Flowers | variously pedicellate; bracteoles membranous; tepals chestnut brown or paler, lanceolate, (2.5–)3.3–5.5(–6) mm, margins clear; inner series loosely subtending capsule at maturity; usually slightly shorter, margins scarious to clear, apex acutish to obtuse; stamens 6, filaments 0.2–1.1 mm, anthers 0.9–2.2 mm; style 0.9–1.5 mm. |
tepals green to brown or reddish brown, lanceolate, 2.4–3.7 mm, nearly equal, apex acuminate; stamens 6; anthers ½1/2 to equal filament length. |
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Capsules | 3-locular or infrequently pseudo-3-locular, oblate to narrowly ovoid, 3.5–4(–4.5) mm, equal to or exceeding perianth. |
slightly exserted, chestnut to dark brown, 1-locular, ellipsoid, 2.4–3.8 mm, apex acuminate, not beaked. |
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Seeds | dark amber, oblate to ellipsoid, 0.6–0.8 mm. |
elliptic to obovate, 0.4–0.6 mm, not tailed. |
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2n | = 40. |
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Juncus arcticus |
Juncus xiphioides |
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Phenology | Fruiting early summer–fall. | |||||||||
Habitat | Salt marshes, moist areas, ditches, springs, lake and stream shores | |||||||||
Elevation | 500–1600 m (1600–5200 ft) | |||||||||
Distribution |
AK; AR; AZ; CA; CO; DE; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MT; ND; NE; NH; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; SD; TX; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NS; NT; NU; ON; PE; QC; SK; YT; Mexico; South America; Asia
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AZ; CA; NM; NV; UT; Mexico (Baja California)
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Discussion | Numerous entities have been circumscribed and recognized at various nomenclatural ranks by a plethora of authors addressing state or regional floras. In considering the Juncus arcticus-balticus complex as a whole in North America, one is soon confronted with a wide-ranging and obviously polymorphic complex that has not read the literature. It is abundantly clear that the systematics of the group will not be solved on the basis of morphology alone and that resolution of the problem is ripe for molecular investigations. Varieties 3 7 (3 in the flora). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
This species and the next (Juncus ensifolius) are closely related and have been treated as members of a single species (J. xiphioides) by Engelmann. Until a study of the complete subgenus is done, we are hesitant to use a varietal name (J. xiphioides var. triandrus) for the widespread western taxon J. ensifolius. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Key |
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Source | FNA vol. 22. | FNA vol. 22. | ||||||||
Parent taxa | Juncaceae > Juncus > subg. Genuini | Juncaceae > Juncus > subg. Ensifolii | ||||||||
Sibling taxa | ||||||||||
Subordinate taxa | ||||||||||
Synonyms | J. xiphioides var. auratus, J. xiphioides var. littoralis | |||||||||
Name authority | Willdenow: Sp. Pl. 2: 206. (1799) | E. Meyer: Synopsis Juncorum 50. (1822) | ||||||||
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