''Scirpus diffusus'' is a species of flowering plant in the sedge family known by the common name umbrella bulrush. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, where it can be found in several of the high mountain ranges from the Klamath Mountains to the Sierra Nevada. It grows in

wetland A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...

habitat and other moist areas, such as mountain meadows. It is similar to '' Scirpus congdonii'' and was described from herbarium specimens once mislabeled as such.Schuyler, A. E. (1966). A new species of ''Scirpus'' in California. ''Brittonia'' 18:2 140-142. It is a

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

herb forming a clump of erect stems growing up to a meter tall, solitary stems sometimes occurring as well. The stems are three-angled and narrow at the middle. Sheathing leaves occur at the stem bases as well as higher up the stems. The

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

occurs at the end of the stem, with small additional ones growing from the uppermost leaf axial. The inflorescence consists of several clusters of many spikelets wrapped at the bases in a leaflike

bract In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves in size, color, shape or texture. They also lo ...

References

External links

Jepson Manual TreatmentUSDA Plants ProfileFlora of North AmericaPhoto gallery
diffusus Endemic flora of California Plants described in 1966 Flora without expected TNC conservation status {{Cyperaceae-stub