''Luzula spicata'' is a species of flowering plant in the
rush family
Juncaceae is a family of flowering plants, commonly known as the rush family. It consists of 8 genus, genera and about 464 known species of slow-growing, rhizomatous, herbaceous monocotyledonous plants that may superficially resemble Poaceae, ...
known by the common name spiked woodrush.
It has a circumpolar distribution, occurring throughout the northern Northern Hemisphere in Europe, Asia, and North America. It grows in
subalpine and
alpine climates. It occurs at low elevations in colder regions, such as
tundra; farther south it is restricted mainly to high mountains. It is a
perennial herb forming grasslike clumps of several erect, reddish stems up to about 33 centimeters in maximum height. The stem is thick and its base is buried several centimeters in the soil where it attaches to the roots. The
inflorescence is an array of several clusters of brown bristle-tipped flowers. The surrounding
bract
In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...
s and the sheaths surrounding the leaf bases are lined with hairs.
References
External links
Jepson Manual TreatmentPhoto gallery
spicata
Flora of North America
Plants described in 1753
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus
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