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arrow-grass, common arrow-grass, saltmarsh arrow-grass, seaside arrow-grass, troscart maritime

streaked arrow grass, three-rib arrow-grass

Habit Plants with fibrous strands of old leaves at base, 3.5–61.5 cm. Plants with fibrous strands of old leaves at base, 6–35 cm.
Leaves

erect from sheath, mostly shorter than scape, 2.2–11.5 cm;

sheath 0.7–2.5 cm × 1–1.8 mm, ligule occasionally hoodlike, apically 2-lobed;

blade 0.9–1.4 mm wide, apex obtuse to round.

erect from sheath, mostly longer than scapes, 4–35 cm;

sheath 1.1–7.5 cm × 0.7–1 mm, ligule not hoodlike, unlobed;

blade 0.2–5 mm wide, apex round-acute.

Inflorescences

scape often purple near base, mostly exceeding leaves, 1–16.5 cm × 0.5–1 mm;

racemes 6–45 cm × 1.5–7 mm;

pedicel 1–4 × 0.2–0.3 mm.

scape green to brown, mostly exceeded by leaves, 4.5–21.5 cm × 0.3–1.6 mm;

racemes 0.6–20.3 × 0.4–1.3 cm;

pedicels 0.4–2.1 × 0.1–0.3 mm.

Flowers

tepals elliptic, 1.3–1.7 × 0.6–1.4 mm, apex acute;

pistils 6, all fertile.

tepals oval to elliptic, 0.6–1 × 0.8–0.9 mm, apex obtuse;

pistils 6, 3 fertile, 3 sterile.

Fruits

fruiting receptacle without wings;

schizocarps linear to near globose, 2–4.5 × 1.5–2 mm;

mericarps linear to linear-obovate, weakly ridged, 1.5–3.5 × 0.7–1 mm, beak erect to recurved, 0.2 mm.

fruiting receptacle with wings;

schizocarps globose to broader than long, 1–2 × 1.5–2.3 mm;

mericarps obovate, strongly 3-keeled, 1–1.5 × 0.5–0.9 mm, beak reflexed, ca. 0.2 mm.

Chromosome number

unavailableunknown.

2n

= 12, 24, 36, 48, 120.

Triglochin maritima

Triglochin striata

Phenology Flowering summer–fall. Flowering summer-- and fall.
Habitat Coastal and mountain marsh areas and moist alkaline meadows Coastal alkaline marshes
Elevation 0–4000 m (0–13100 ft) 0–10 m (0–0 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; AZ; CA; CO; CT; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; MA; ME; MI; MN; MT; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SD; UT; VT; WA; WI; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NL; NS; NT; NU; ON; PE; QC; SK; YT; Mexico; South America; n Europe; n Asia
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; CA; FL; GA; LA; MS; NC; OR; SC; VA; Mexico; West Indies (Bahamas, Greater Antilles); South America (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Peru)
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

This taxon has been separated into Triglochin concinna and T. maritima based upon the lobing of the ligule and the smaller size of the plants of the former (e.g., J. L. Reveal 1977; R. F. Thorne 1993). On a local basis such a separation seems warranted. Examination of the T. maritima complex throughout the Americas, however, reveals continuous variation from small, widely spaced plants with 2-lobed ligules to large, tufted plants with unlobed ligules, including plants with all combinations of those characters.

Triglochin maritima is important in livestock management because it is quite toxic: it is a cyanide producer.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 22. FNA vol. 22.
Parent taxa Juncaginaceae > Triglochin Juncaginaceae > Triglochin
Sibling taxa
T. gaspensis, T. palustris, T. striata
T. gaspensis, T. maritima, T. palustris
Synonyms T. concinna, T. concinna var. debilis, T. debilis, T. elata
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 339. 1753 (as maritimum) Ruiz & Pavón: Flora Peruviana 3: 72. 1802 (as striatum)
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