Scirpus Acutus- Hard Stem Bulrush

Native to North America, this plant has green foliage with a coarse texture that is densely porous in the summer and moderately permeable in the winter. It produces green flowers and inconspicuous black seeds. It is part of the Sedge family, and its genus is a bulrush. It grows with an upright shape with reddish-brown spikelets. It has a moderate growth rate and reaches its maximum height ranging from six feet to nine and a half feet before its maturity at 20 years. Not considered to be a low growing grass, it has a long lifespan. Present throughout Canada and the Eastern United States, the Hard Stem Bulrush is usually a wetland plant but may occur in non-wetlands as well.

Its root depth reaches a minimum of 14 inches.

It does not do well in the shade but can handle cold temperatures reaching as low as -38 degrees Fahrenheit. This plant grows in saturated soil with a fine or medium texture. It does not do well in coarse soil. The ground should have a minimum of 5.2 pH and a maximum of 8.5 pH balance. It grows in soil that is wet. It has a moderate tolerance for drought and fire and is not fire resistant. The Hard Stem Bulrush needs high amounts of moisture. To thrive, it requires a minimum of 110 days that are frost-free. It blooms in the late spring and produces seeds starting in the spring and ending in the fall. Propagation does not occur with cuttings, sod, tubers, bulbs, containers or bare root.

This plant reproduces using its seed or sprigs.

It has rhizomatous roots. It produces moderately vigorous seedlings and does not have a spread rate for its vegetation. Its active growth period takes place in the spring and experiences a slow regrowth rate after harvest. This is not a toxic plant and provides soil erosion control and nesting areas for wildlife.