Juncus pylaei — Pylaei's soft rush
![Leaves and auricles: Juncus pylaei. ~ By Derick B. Poindexter. ~ Copyright © 2024 Derick B. Poindexter. ~ dpoindex[at]live.unc.edu ~ Vascular Flora of Alleghany County, NC - vascularflora.appstate.edu/](https://newfs.s3.amazonaws.com:443/taxon-images-1000s1000/Juncaceae/juncus-pylaei-la-dpoindexter1.jpg)
![Flowers and fruits: Juncus pylaei. ~ By Arthur Haines. ~ Copyright © 2024 Arthur Haines. ~ arthur.d.haines[at]gmail.com](https://newfs.s3.amazonaws.com:443/taxon-images-1000s1000/Juncaceae/juncus-pylaei-ff-ahaines-b.jpg)
![Stems and sheaths: Juncus pylaei. ~ By Arthur Haines. ~ Copyright © 2024 Arthur Haines. ~ arthur.d.haines[at]gmail.com](https://newfs.s3.amazonaws.com:443/taxon-images-1000s1000/Juncaceae/juncus-pylaei-ss-ahaines-a.jpg)
![Inflorescences: Juncus pylaei. ~ By Elizabeth Farnsworth. ~ Copyright © 2024 New England Wild Flower Society. ~ Image Request, images[at]newenglandwild.org](https://newfs.s3.amazonaws.com:443/taxon-images-1000s1000/Juncaceae/juncus-pylaei-in-efarnsworth.jpg)
Copyright: various copyright holders. To reuse an image, please click it to see who you will need to contact.
New England distribution
Adapted from BONAP data
Native: indigenous.
Non-native: introduced (intentionally or unintentionally); has become naturalized.
County documented: documented to exist in the county by evidence (herbarium specimen, photograph). Also covers those considered historical (not seen in 20 years).
State documented: documented to exist in the state, but not documented to a county within the state. Also covers those considered historical (not seen in 20 years).
Note: when native and non-native populations both exist in a county, only native status is shown on the map.
Found this plant? Take a photo and post a sighting.
enlargeFacts
Pylaei's soft rush is often considered a variety of common soft rush (Juncus effusus).
Habitat
Anthropogenic (man-made or disturbed habitats), marshes, meadows and fields, shores of rivers or lakes, wetland margins (edges of wetlands)
Characteristics
- Habitat
- wetlands
- New England state
-
- Connecticut
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- New Hampshire
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Stem shape in cross-section
- the stem is round or oval in cross-section
- Leaf blade width
- 0 mm
- Leaf blade cross-section
- NA
- Inflorescence position
- the inflorescence appears to come from the side of the plant because the involucral bract at its base looks like an extension of the main stem
- Inflorescence branching
- the inflorescence is branched
- Fruit type (general)
- the fruit is a capsule, with at least three seeds in it
- Fruit length
- 1.5–3.2 mm
- Leaf position on plant
- the attachment points of all the leaves are at or near the base of the plant
- Perianth composition
- the perianth is green or brown, with six sepal-like parts, and a leafy texture
- Fruit cross-section
- the fruit is triangular to terete (circular) in cross-section
-
Flowers
- Anther color (dry)
- the anthers range in color from white to tan or yellow to yellow-brown
- Anther length
- 0.5–0.8 mm
- Floral bristle color
- NA
- Floral bristle number
- NA
- Floral bristle relative length
- NA
- Floral bristles
- NA
- Floral scale hairs
- NA
- Floral scale length
- 0 mm
- Floral scale nerves
- NA
- Flower number per cluster
-
- 5-20
- more than 20
- Inflorescence bract angle
- the bracts are vertical or angled only slightly outwards
- Inflorescence bract number
- there is just one bract on the inflorescence
- Inflorescence bract position (Sparganium)
- NA
- Inflorescence bracts
- there is only one bract, and it looks like a continuation of the stem
- Inflorescence branching
- the inflorescence is branched
- Inflorescence crowding
- the inflorescence is at least somewhat spread out, with at least one branch coming from the main stem
- Inflorescence position
- the inflorescence appears to come from the side of the plant because the involucral bract at its base looks like an extension of the main stem
- Inflorescence shape
- the aggregations within the inflorescence are roughly circular (not flattened) in cross-section
- Inflorescence type
- there are two or more flowers, spikes or flower clusters on a branched inflorescence
- Perianth composition
- the perianth is green or brown, with six sepal-like parts, and a leafy texture
- Stamen length
- 1–1.6 mm
- Stamen number
- 3
- Stigma number
- 3
- floral bristle barbs
- NA
-
Fruits or seeds
- Achene beak length
- 0 mm
- Achene surface texture
- NA
- Achene tubercle relative width
- NA
- Achene tubercle width
- 0 mm
- Capsule relative length
- the capsule is about equal to the perianth
- Fruit cross-section
- the fruit is triangular to terete (circular) in cross-section
- Fruit length
- 1.5–3.2 mm
- Fruit type (general)
- the fruit is a capsule, with at least three seeds in it
- Fruit type (specific)
- the fruit is a capsule (splits along two or more seams, apical teeth or pores when dry, to release two or more seeds)
- Locules in capsule
- the capsule has three locules
- Seed length
- 0.3–0.5 mm
- Seed tail relative length
- 0.3–0.5 mm
- Seed tails
- there is no tail on the seeds
- Tubercle height
- 0 mm
-
Growth form
- Lifespan
- the plant lives more than two years
- Rhizome thickness
- 2–4 mm
- Underground organs
- the plant has a rhizome (a horizontal underground stem with roots growing from it)
-
Leaves
- Auricle length
- 0 mm
- Auricle texture
- NA
- Auricles
- NA
- Leaf blade cross-section
- NA
- Leaf blade length
- 0 mm
- Leaf blade width
- 0 mm
- Leaf form
- all the leaves hold their form out of water
- Leaf position on plant
- the attachment points of all the leaves are at or near the base of the plant
- Leaf septa
- NA
- Leaf sheath hairs
- the leaf sheathes are without hairs
- Pedicel length (Typha)
- 0 mm
- Stem leaf blade ligules
- NA
- Stem leaf blades
- there are no leaves on the main stem, or there is a small tooth or tiny blade, or a leaf sheath with no blade
- Width of seed-producing inflorescence
- 15–80 mm
-
Place
- Habitat
- wetlands
- New England state
-
- Connecticut
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- New Hampshire
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Specific habitat
-
- edges of wetlands
- man-made or disturbed habitats
- marshes
- meadows or fields
- shores of rivers or lakes
-
Stem, shoot, branch
- Plant height
- 50–130 cm
- Stem shape in cross-section
- the stem is round or oval in cross-section
- Stem texture near tip
- the stem feels smooth near the tip
- Stem thickness at midpoint
- 1–2.5 mm
Wetland status
Occurs only in wetlands. (Wetland indicator code: OBL)
New England distribution and conservation status
Distribution
- Connecticut
- present
- Maine
- present
- Massachusetts
- present
- New Hampshire
- present
- Rhode Island
- present
- Vermont
- present
Conservation status
None
Native to North America?
Yes
Sometimes confused with
- Juncus effusus:
- apical half of stem with mostly 30-60 fine striations (vs. J. pylaei, with the apical half of stems with 10-30 grooves).
Synonyms
- Juncus effusus var. pylaei (Laharpe) Fern. & Wieg.
Family
Genus
From the dichotomous key of Flora Novae Angliae
30. Juncus pylaei Laharpe N
Pylae’s soft rush. Juncus effusus L. var. decipiens, auct. non Buch.; J. effusus L. var. pylaei (Laharpe) Fern. & Wieg. • CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT. Graminoid marshes, ditches, shorelines, meadows, low areas in fields. Juncus pylaei and J. effusus ssp. solutus are the two native members of the J. effusus complex in New England (and are the most common taxa in that complex). In addition to characters provided in the key, they differ in leaf sheath and inflorescence morphology. Juncus pylaei has longest sheaths on reproductive stems 5–12 cm long that are dark red-brown to purple-black (especially dark near the base) and longest inflorescence branches (10–) 20–30 (–50) mm long. Juncus effusus ssp. solutus has longest sheaths on reproductive stems (12–) 15–27 cm long that are pale brown to red-brown (rarely dark brown) and longest inflorescence branches (30–) 40–100 mm long.