| Common spikerush | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Cyperaceae |
| Genus: | Eleocharis |
| Species: | E. acuta |
| Binomial name | |
| Eleocharis acuta | |
Eleocharis acuta, commonly known as common spikerush or small spikerush, [1] is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia. [2]
The rhizomatous perennial herb to grass-like sedge typically grows to a height of 0.7 metres (2.3 ft). It blooms between September and December producing brown flowers. [2] It has fine upright cylinder-shaped deep-green foliage that tapers to a fine point. [1] It has tufted and terete culms that are 10 to 60 centimetres (3.9 to 23.6 in) in length with a diameter of 1 to 3 millimetres (0.039 to 0.118 in). The inflorescence is found at the tip of the spike and is composed of narrow-ovoid to narrow-cylindrical spikelets with a length of 10 to 30 mm (0.39 to 1.18 in). It will later form a shiny yellow to brown coloured nut with a plano-convex to biconvex, broad-obovoid shape that is around 1.5 to 1.7 mm (0.059 to 0.067 in) in length with a diameter of 1.1 to 1.2 mm (0.043 to 0.047 in). [3]
The species was first formally described by the botanist Robert Brown in 1810 as part of the work Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae . The name of the species is often misapplied to Eleocharis pallens . [4]
It is found widely through all Australian states, but not the Northern Territory. It is also found in New Zealand, New Guinea and Norfolk Island. [3] In Western Australia it is found in and around swamps and clay pans in the Mid West, Wheatbelt, Great Southern and Goldfields-Esperance regions where it grows in sandy-peaty-clay soils. [2]
It typically occurs in water or wet soil, seepage areas, freshwater lakes, and creek-beds. [5]
It is able to grow in stationary to slowly moving water with a range extends from the coast to many inland areas. It is used in wetland area and is habitat for waterbirds as nesting material and the seeds as a food source. [6] The plant is sold commercially as it can form dense swards able to easily colonize shallow fresh water areas including along the edges of lagoons, dams, drainage lines and waterlogged low-lying areas. [1]
Eleocharis is a virtually cosmopolitan genus of 250 or more species of flowering plants in the sedge family, Cyperaceae. The name is derived from the Greek words ἕλειος (heleios), meaning "marsh dweller," and χάρις (charis), meaning "grace." Members of the genus are known commonly as spikerushes or spikesedges. The genus has a geographically cosmopolitan distribution, with centers of diversity in the Amazon Rainforest and adjacent eastern slopes of the South American Andes, northern Australia, eastern North America, California, Southern Africa, and subtropical Asia. The vast majority of Eleocharis species grow in aquatic or mesic habitats from sea level to higher than 5,000 meters in elevation.
Machaerina juncea, commonly known as bare twig-rush or tussock swamp twig rush, is a sedge in the sedge family, Cyperaceae, that is native to Australia, New Zealand, and New Caledonia.
Machaerina rubiginosa, commonly known as soft twig rush, flat leaf twig rush or common twig rush, is a flowering plant in the sedge family, Cyperaceae, that is native to Asia and the Pacific.
Carex inversa, commonly known as knob sedge, is a species of sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to parts of Australia and New Zealand and has also been introduced into Great Britain.
Carex pumila, commonly known as strand sedge or spreading sedge, is a species of sedge of the family Cyperaceae.
Chorizandra cymbaria, commonly known as heron bristle rush or heron bristle sedge, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia.
Cyperus alterniflorus is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia.
Cyperus compressus, commonly known as annual sedge, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that has a wide distribution throughout countries with warmer climates. It is found in tropical areas of Africa, Asia and the Americas.
Cyperus concinnus is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia, and found in New South Wales, Queensland, the Northern Territory, South Australia, Victoria and Western Australia.
Cyperus congestus, commonly known as dense flat-sedge or clustered flat-sedge, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to southern Africa mostly in South Africa, Lesotho and Namibia.
Cyperus dactylotes is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to all of mainland Australia except for Victoria.
Cyperus hamulosus is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae. It is native from Bulgaria east to Mongolia, and from Morocco in north Africa down to Namibia in the south. It has also been introduced to western parts of Australia.
Cyperus nutans is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia, China, India, Bangladesh, south-east Asia, Malaysia, India, and Indonesia.
Cyperus vaginatus, commonly known as stiff-leaf sedge or stiff flat-sedge, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia.
Cyperus victoriensis, also known as channel nut grass is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to all the states and territories of mainland Australia.
Cyperus vorsteri is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae native to KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa.
Eleocharis ochrostachys, commonly known as spike rush, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia and Asia.
Eleocharis pallens, commonly known as pale spikerush, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia.
Eleocharis sphacelata, commonly known as tall spikerush, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia and New Zealand.
Eleocharis nitida is a species of flowering plant commonly called neat spikerush, it is a member of the sedge family Cyperaceae.