214. THE STORY OF PLANT LIFE 
The plant is fond, like most rushes, of damp 
ground, being a moisture-loving species. It is thus 
found in wet places by the sides of ponds, pools and 
lakes, in fields and meadows where the ground is wet 
and marshy. 
In marshes it is frequent, and it is to be found in 
ditches by streams and rivers, in lowland and upland 
regions alike. 
It has the czspitose or tufted habit of all rushes, 
with the grass habit in its foliage, etc. 
The stem is rounded, finely striate, not glaucous, 
and may grow inatuft. The stems and leaves are 
soft, not hard, with continuous pith, not septate, 
greenish, the leaves being almost reduced to sheaths. — 
The flowers are numerous in lateral cymes, which 
are compound, and vary in shape and size, the cyme 
being effuse and loose. The perianth is of an olive- 
green colour. There are three stamens. The segments 
of the perianth are continuous, lanceolate, and are 
longer than thecapsule. ‘The capsule is obovoid and 
retuse. The seeds are small and yellowish-brown. 
The stigmas ripen before the anthers, and the 
flower is pollinated by aid of the wind. 
The Common Rush is 2 to 3 ft. in height. The 
flowers are in bloom in July and August. 
Rushes were formerly used to strew the floors in 
place of matting or carpets. 
They help to bind the soil together in marshy 
places, accumulating the silt. For bullock raising 
they serve as a good pasture food. 
4 
| 
; 
; 
