JlJNCUS. 



JUNCACEiE. 



325 



2. JUNCUS. Linn.; Endl. gen. 1049. rush. 



[ From the Latin word jitngo, to join ; the stems and leaves having been used for cordage.] 



Perianth spreading, glumaceous. Stamens 6, or sometimes 3 : filaments smooth. Ovary 

 3-celled, with numerous ovules. Capsule 3-celled, many-seeded. Seeds sometimes with 

 an appendage at one or both ends. Leaves terete, channelled or flat. Inflorescence cymose 

 or paniculate, sometimes apparently lateral. 



* Stems (scapes) naked, with leafless shcalhs at the base : inflorescence laterals 



1. Juncus effusus, Linn. Bog-rush. Soft Rush. 



Scape minutely striate, soft ; panicle loose, much branched ; flowers triandrous ; leaflets 

 of the perianth lanceolate, spreading, very acute, as long as the obovoid obtuse capsule. — 

 Linn. sp. 1. p. 326 ; Engl. hot. t. 836 ; Pursh, fl. 1. p. 236 ; MuJil. gram, p 204 ; Ell. 

 sk. 1. p. 405 ; Bigel. fl. Bost. p. 138 ; Torr. fl. 1. p. 359 ; Beck, hot. p. 371 ; Darlingt. 

 fl. Cest. p. 227. J. communis, E. Met/. June. no. 12, ex Kunth, enum. 3. p. 320. 



Scapes 2 — 3 feet high, growing in dense bunches, many of them barren and resembling 

 cylindrical leaves, of a soft and pliable texture, filled with a spongy pith, and tapering above 

 into a long slender point. Panicle bursting from the side of the scape above the middle, 

 sessile ; the flowers green. Leaflets of the perianth very acute. Style extremely short : 

 stigmas filiform, spreading. Capsule obtusely triangular. Seeds oblong, acute at each end, 

 but without appendages. 



Low moist grounds : very common. Fl. June. Fr. August. The stalks are sometimes 

 used in making mats, and for the bottoms of chairs. 



2. Juncus filiformis, Linn. Slender Rush. 



Scape filiform, smooth ; panicle few- (6 - 10-) flowered ; stamens 6 ; leaflets of the perianth 

 lanceolate, acute, rather longer than the obovoid, obtuse, apiculate capsule. — Linn. sp. 1. 

 p. 326 ; Engl. hot. t. 1175 ; Michx. fl. 1. p. 191 ; Pursh, fl. I. p. 236 ; Bigel. fl. Bost. 

 p. 138; Hook. fl. Bor.-Am. 2. p. 190; Kunth, enum. 3. p. 318. J. setaceus, Torr. fl. 1. 

 p. 360; Beck, hot. p. 371, excl. syn. 



Rhizoma creeping. Scapes 1^-2 feet high, scarcely half a line in diameter, clothed at 

 the base with several brown acute sheaths. Panicle bursting from the side of the scape 

 above the middle, contracted and usually erect. Flowers on short pedicels (those in the forks 

 sessile). Capsule shining, obtuse, but pointed with the persistent base of the style. Seeds 

 ovoid-oblong, slightly poinled at each end. 



Borders of lakes in the northern and western parts of the State. Fl. July. Resembles 

 the European plant very closely. 



t The inflorescence in this section, according to Kunth and others, may be regarded as terminal, and subtended by 2 

 leaves : the exterior being apparently a continuation of the scape, and very long ; the inner one reduced to a scale. 



