Juncus tenuis |
Juncus diffusissimus |
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path rush, poverty or slender rush, poverty rush, slender rush |
diffuse rush, slim-fruit rush, slim-pod rush |
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Habit | Herbs, perennial, tufted, 1.5–5 dm. | Herbs, perennial, cespitose, 2.5–6.5 dm. |
Rhizomes | densely branching. |
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Culms | few–20. |
erect, terete, 1–3 mm diam., smooth. |
Cataphylls | 0–1, maroon or dark green, apex obtuse. |
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Leaves | basal, (1–)2–3; auricles 2–5 mm, apex acute, membranous; blade flat, 3–12 cm × 0.5–1 mm, margins entire. |
basal 1, cauline 2–3; auricles 1–2.1 mm, apex rounded, membranaceous; blade maroon or dark green, terete to compressed, 3–20 cm × 1–2.4 mm. |
Inflorescences | 5–40-flowered, borne congested or branch internodes ca. as long as tepals, ssomewhat loose, 1–5 cm; primary bract usually longer than inflorescence. |
terminal panicles of 30–70(–130), 5–20 cm, branches spreading; primary bract erect; ; heads (1–)2–10-flowered, hemispheric or narrower, 5–10 mm diam. |
Flowers | bracteoles 2; tepals greenish, lanceolate, 3.3–4.4 mm; outer and inner series nearly equal; stamens 6, filaments 0.5–0.9 mm, anthers 0.1–0.2 mm; style 0.1–0.2 mm. |
tepals green to straw-colored, lanceolate, apex acute; outer tepals (2–)2.6–3.2 mm; inner tepals (1.8–)2.3–3 mm; stamens 3, anthers 1/2–2/3 filament length. |
Capsules | tan or light brown, 1-locular to pseudo-3-locular, ellipsoid, (3.3–)3.8–4.7 × (1.1–)1.3–1.7 mm, nearly equal to tepals. |
exserted, , straw-colored, 1-locular, linear-lanceoloid, 4–5.2 mm, apex acute, valves separating at dehiscence. |
Seeds | tan, ellipsoid to lunate, (0.52–)5.5–0.65(–0.7) mm, not tailed. |
oblong-ellipsoid, 0.3–0.4 mm, not tailed; body clear yellow-brown. |
2n | = 80. |
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Juncus tenuis |
Juncus diffusissimus |
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Phenology | Flowering spring–early summer. | Fruiting summer. |
Habitat | Exposed or shaded sites in soils ranging from sandy to clayey under moist or drier conditions, oftentimes these sites naturally or otherwise disturbed (e.g., game or human trails) | In soft mucky substrates, marshy shores, sloughs, occasionally in wet wooded places, often in shallow water, commonly abundantly colonizing wet, sandy- alluvial outwash in ditches and clearings |
Elevation | 10–1000 m (0–3300 ft) | |
Distribution |
AK; AL; AR; AZ; CA; CO; CT; DC; DE; FL; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; MT; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; UT; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NS; ON; PE; QC; SK [Introduced worldwide]
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AL; AR; CA; CT; FL; GA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MD; MO; MS; NC; OH; OK; SC; TN; TX; VA; WA; WV [Probably introduced, South America]
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Discussion | Juncus tenuis occurs throughout North America. It is particularly abundant in northeastern United States and eastern Canada, although infrequent in the south and west. Through the use of isozyme electrophoresis, hybridization can be demonstrated between various members of the Juncus tenuis complex, including Juncus tenuis, J. anthelatus, J. interior, J. secundus, and J. dichotomus (R. E. Brooks, unpubl.). Juncus ××oronensis is thought to be a hybrid between J. tenuis and J. vaseyi in the northeast. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Source | FNA vol. 22. | FNA vol. 22. |
Parent taxa | Juncaceae > Juncus > subg. Poiophylli | Juncaceae > Juncus > subg. Septati |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | J. bicornis, J. bicornis var. williamsii, J. macer, J. macer, J. macer var. williamsii, J. tenuis var. bicornis, J. tenuis var. multicornis, J. tenuis var. williamsii | |
Name authority | Willdenow: Sp. Pl. 2(1): 214. (1799) | Buckley: Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 14: 9. (1862) |
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