128 PLANT LIFE OF ALABAMA. 
firmly in the soil, their mostly strong, interlacing rhizomes forming a 
dense sod, resisting the action of waves and winds. Reed-like grasses, 
large rushes, and tall umbelliferous plants are the most conspicuous 
features of this association. Species are— 
Phraginites communis. Scirpus lacustris. 
Spartina polystachya. Scirpus olneyt. 
Spartina cynosuroides. Scirpus fluviatilis. 
Zizania aquatica. Cladium effusum. 
Zizaniopsis miliacea. is Cyperus articulatus. 
Panicum virgatum. Cicuta maculata. 
Panicum digitarioides. Oxypolis teretifolia. 
Typha latifolia. Sium cicutaefolium. 
Zizania aquatica, Scirpus lacustris, and Typha latifolia are among 
the first to gain a firm hold on the muddy shoals, constantly formed by 
the deposits of silt with which the turbid waters are charged. The 
following plants constitute the lower and closer covering of the soil: 
Cyperus erythrorhizos. Carex alata. 
Cyperus strigosus. Homatocenchrus hexandrus. 
Cyperus stenolepis. Andropogon glomeratus glaucopsis. 
Cyperus speciosus. Rynchospora caduca. ; 
Carex lurida. Rynchospora corniculata. 
Carex: albolutescens. 
Among other paludial plants which adorn the reed marshes are: 
Ipomoea sagittata, Vernonia gigantea, 
Mesadenia lanceolata, Sagittaria falcata lanceolata, 
Kosteletzkya virginica, Sagittaria montevidensis, 
Boltonia diffusa, Sagittaria viscosa (rare), 
plants characteristic of such marshes from North Carolina to Louis- 
iana. With these grow also— 
Lythrum lineare, Echinodorus radicans, 
Pontederia cordata, Sagittaria latifolia, 
Rumez altissimus, 
of frequent occurrence as far as the northern limit of the Carolinian 
area; and Solidago sempervirens ranging from the coast of Nova Scotia 
southward. The Sagittarias often occupy considerable tracts almost 
exclusively. The dark waters of ditches and shallow pools at the out- 
skirts of these marshes are filled with the floating stems of Jussiaea 
diffusa and bordered by— 
Hydrocotyle ranunculoides. Pi Ptilimnium capillaceum. 
Hydrocotyle verticillata. Ua Aeschynomene virginica. 
Ranunculus sceleratus, 
Eleocharis montana, with its densely matted rhizomes, forms wide 
patches of. shining bright green, rarely accompanied by Lleocharis 
palustris. Triglochin striata, Juncus scirpoides, and J. polycephalus 
are scattered through the marsh, and Vigna glabra and Willughbya 
scandens intertwine their stems among the grasses and sedges lining 
the muddy banks. Seshania macrocarpa and Glottidium floridanum 
