Luzula spicata (L.) DC.
spiked wood-rush (spiked woodrush)
Juncaceae (Rush family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
spiked wood-rush (spiked woodrush)
Juncaceae (Rush family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Species Information
General:
Perennial, densely tufted herb from fibrous roots; stems 10-35 cm tall.
Leaves:
Narrow, channeled, sparsely fringed with fine hairs, about 5-15 cm long, 1-2.5 mm wide, with sharp tips; sheaths brown to purplish.
Flowers:
Inflorescence solitary, dense, spike-like, drooping, with 5 to 10 clusters, each cluster with 3 to 6 flowers; perianth segments brown with paler tips, 2-3 mm long, lanceolate, tapering into long awns, the inner about the same length as the outer; stamens 6; anthers 0.4-0.6 mm long, about the same length as the filaments; bracts bristlelike, reduced.
Fruits:
Capsules, ellipsoid, pointed, shorter than the perianth segments; seeds egg-shaped, 0.9-1.1 mm long, with minute appendages.
Illustration
If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.
Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
USDA Species Characteristics
Flower Colour:
Green
Blooming Period:
Late Spring
Fruit/Seed characteristics:
Colour: Brown
Present from Summer to Fall
Source: The USDA
Ecology
Ecological Framework for Luzula spicata
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
| Site Information |
Value / Class |
||
|
Avg |
Min |
Max |
|
| Elevation
(metres) |
2032 | 7 | 3000 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
25 | 0 | 140 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
197 | 0 | 360 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
2 | 0 | 8 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
C | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
709 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
BAFA | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
AT(169), BAFA(220), CDF(1), CMA(6), CWH(7), ESSF(174), ICH(1), IMA(96), MS(2), SWB(2) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Dry rocky slopes in the subalpine and alpine zones; frequent throughout BC; circumpolar, N to AK, YT and NT, disjunct E to MB, PQ and NF and S to ME, NH, VT, NY, NM, AZ and CA; Eurasia, Greenland.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Juncoides spicatum (L.) Kuntze
Luzula spicata subsp. saximontana A. Löve & D. Löve, nom. inq.