FIELD ID CHARACTERISTICS:
Identification of Juncus to species requires examination of mature seeds and fruits. All Juncus have 6 sepal-like structures surrounding each fruit.
Description: Grass-like rush, forming dense clumps. Upright, hollow, smooth, needle-like stems. Terminal seedheads with many capsules on short stalks. Grows to 0.5 m tall.
Leaves: Non-septate leaves (no internal divisions) which vary in cross-section from round to flattened.
Flowers/Fruit: Inflorescence at top of flowering stem is panicle of numerous small flowers on short stalks. Flowers and fruits May to September.
Habit and Range: Lives in a variety of moist, open habitats, but also occurs in drier places than mother other Juncus species, such as moist sandy roadsides, powerlines, maritime grasslands, and fields. Found statewide but more common in the Coastal Plain.
COMMON CONFUSIONS:
Juncus dichotomous (forked rush) is similar to J. coriaceus (leathery rush), which has rounded seed capsules with sepals that do not extend beyond the capsule.
Click here to view Juncus coriaceus.
Link to side-by-side comparisons page
