River club-rush, Soft-stemmed bulrush
Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani

Family: Cyperaceae

What it is like

An erect rush. It has underground stems or rhizomes. It forms dense grey-green stands. It keeps growing from year to year. They can be 0.5-1.5 m high. The flower stems can be 3 m high. The leaves are reduce and form sheaths around the stem. The stems are almost round. They are 12 mm across. They have a spongy pith. The flowering shoot is at the top. It becomes open. There are several spikelets about 1 cm long by 0.5 cm wide. There are chaffy bracts underneath them. These are shorter than the flowering shoots. The nut is flattened and about 2 mm long.

There are about 60 Schoenoplectus species. Several are now included in Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani.

Where it is found

It is a temperate plant. It grows on the edges of ponds and deep water. In Argentina it grows from sea level to 700 m above sea level. Tasmanian Herbarium.

Countries/locations it is found in

Alaska, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Caribbean, Central Asia, Central America, Estonia, Europe, Georgia, Hawaii, Korea, Luxembourg, New Caledonia, New Zealand, North America, Pacific, Paraguay, Slovenia, South America (country/location of origin), Tajikistan, Tasmania, Uruguay, USA, Vanuatu

How it is used for food

The rhizomes are eaten. They are roasted and pounded to extract a small amount of starch. The small white newly emerged shoots are edible. The sweet tubers/bulbs are eaten raw. The stem bases are used for food. They should be cooked. The fresh raw stems are used for food.

Edible parts

Shoots, stalks, rhizomes, tuber, root

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Lake club rush, Merekorkjas, Popoque, Sinjezeleni biček, Tule

Synonyms

Cyperus tabernaemontani (C. C. Gmel.) Missbach & E. H. L. Krause; Eleogiton tabernaemontani (C. C. Gmel.) Fourr.; Heleogiton tabernaemontani (C. C. Gmel.) Peterm.; Heleophylax tabernaemontani (C. C. Gmel.) Schinz & Thell.; Hymenochaeta tabernaemontani (C. C. Gmel.) Nakai; Schoenoplectus lacustris subsp. tabernaemontani (C. C. Gmel.) A. Love & D. Love; Schoenoplectus validus (Vahl) A. Love & D. Love; Scirpus validus J. Vahl;