Typha
Typha latifolia
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Liliopsida Order: Poales Family: Typhaceae Juss. Genus: Typha L.
Species
See text

Typha is a genus of about eleven species of monocotyledonous flowering plants in the monogeneric family, Typhaceae. Typha latifolia ( Bulrush, Common Bulrush, Broadleaf Cattail, Common Cattail, or Cat-o'-nine-tails) is a perennial Plants are living Organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. The flowering plants or angiosperms ( Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta) are the most widespread group Liliopsida is a Botanical name for the class containing the family Liliaceae (or Lily Family Poales is an order of Flowering plants in the Monocotyledons and includes families of plants such as the grasses, Bromeliads, Antoine Laurent de Jussieu ( April 12, 1748 - September 17, 1836) was a French Botanist, notable as the first to propose Carl Linnaeus (Latinized as Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as, May 23 new style (13 May old style 1707 who laid the foundations for A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic In Biology, a species is one of the basic units of Biological classification and a Taxonomic rank. Monocotyledons or monocots are one of two major groups of Flowering plants (angiosperms that are traditionally recognised the other being Dicotyledons Monotypic is an adjective that refers to a taxonomic group with only one type: In Botany, "monotypic" means that a Taxon has only The genus has a largely Northern Hemisphere distribution, but is essentially cosmopolitan, being found in a variety of wetland habitats. Northern Hemisphere is the half of a Planet that is North of the Equator —the word hemisphere literally means 'half ball' In Biogeography, a Biological category of living things is said to have cosmopolitan distribution if this category can be found almost anywhere around the world A wetland is an area of Land consisting of Soil that is Saturated with Moisture, such as a Swamp, Marsh, or Bog These plants are known in British English as bulrush, bullrush or reedmace^[1], and in American English as cattail or punks. British English or UK English ( BrE, BE, en-GB) is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the Phonology North American English regional phonology In many ways compared to English English, North American English is conservative in its Phonology. Cattails should not be confused with the bulrush of the genus Scirpus. The plant Genus Scirpus consists of a large number of aquatic grass-like species in the family Cyperaceae (the sedges many with the common names

Typha plants at the edge of a small wetland in Indiana. Marshall County is a County located in the US state of Indiana.

Cattails are wetland plants, typically 1 to 7 m tall (T. A wetland is an area of Land consisting of Soil that is Saturated with Moisture, such as a Swamp, Marsh, or Bog minima is smaller: 0. 5-1 m), with spongy, strap-like leaves and starchy, creeping stems (rhizomes). In Botany, a rhizome is a horizontal stem of a Plant that is usually found underground often sending out Roots and Shoots The leaves are alternate and mostly basal to a simple, jointless stem that eventually bears the flowers. The rhizomes spread horizontally beneath the surface of muddy ground to start new upright growth, and the spread of cattails is an important part of the process of open water bodies being converted to vegetated marshland and eventually dry land. In Botany, a rhizome is a horizontal stem of a Plant that is usually found underground often sending out Roots and Shoots In Geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of Wetland which is subject

Typha plants are monoecious, wind-pollinated, and bear unisexual flowers developing in dense, complex spikes. Plant sexuality covers the wide variety of Sexual reproduction systems found across the Plant kingdom In Biology, gonochorism ( Greek offspring + disperse or unisexualism describes sexually reproducing species in which there are at A raceme is a type of Inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate Flowers &mdash flowers having short The male flower spike develops at the top of the vertical stem, above the female flower spike (see figure below). The male (staminate) flowers are reduced to a pair of stamens and hairs and wither once the pollen is shed, leaving a short, bare stem portion above the female inflorescence. The stamen ( Plural stamina or stamens, from Latin stamen meaning "thread of the warp " is the male Pollen is a fine to coarse powder consisting of microgametophytes ( pollen grains) which produce the male Gametes (sperm cells of An inflorescence is a group or cluster of Flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main Branch or a complicated arrangement of branches The dense cluster of female flowers forms a cylindrical spike some 10 to as much as 40 cm long and 1 to 4 cm broad. Seeds are minute (about 0. 2 mm long), and attached to a thin hair or stalk, which effects wind dispersal. Typha are often among the first wetland plants to colonize areas of newly exposed wet mud.

Some classifications include the genus Sparganium (Sparganiaceae) in Typhaceae. Sparganiaceae is the Botanical name for a family of Flowering plants.

Species

• Typha angustifolia - Lesser Bulrush or Narrow Leaf Cattail
• Typha angustifolia x T. Typha angustifolia (L Lesser Bulrush or Narrow Leaf Cattail, is a perennial Herbaceous plant of Genus latifolia - Hybrid or White Cattail
• Typha domingensis - Southern Cattail
• Typha latifolia - Common Cattail
• Typha laxmannii - Laxman's Bulrush
• Typha minima - Dwarf Bulrush
• Typha orientalis and Typha muelleri^[2] - Raupo
• Typha shuttleworthii - Shuttleworth's Bulrush

The most widespread species is Typha latifolia, extending across the entire temperate Northern Hemisphere. Typha latifolia ( Bulrush, Common Bulrush, Broadleaf Cattail, Common Cattail, or Cat-o'-nine-tails) is a perennial T. angustifolia is nearly as widespread, but does not extend so far north. T. domingensis is a more southerly American species, extending from the U.S. to South America, while T. The Americas are the lands of the Western hemisphere or New World, consisting of the Continents of North America and South America The United States of America —commonly referred to as the South America is a Continent of the Americas, situated entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a laxmannii, T. minima and T. shuttleworthii are largely restricted to Asia and parts of southern Europe.

Typha latifolia

Typha plants grow along lake margins and in marshes, often in dense colonies, and are sometimes considered a weed in managed wetlands. The plant's root systems help prevent erosion, and the plants themselves are often home to many insects, birds and amphibians. Erosion is the carrying away or displacement of solids ( Sediment, Soil, rock and other particles usually by the agents of currents such as wind Prehistoric amphibian Amphibians (class Amphibia such as Frogs Toads Salamanders Newts Gymnophiona, Sirens and

In North America, the native cattails are increasingly being supplanted by the invasive purple loosestrife Lythrum salicaria. Introduced species|Weed Invasive species is a phrase with several definitions Lythrum salicaria ( Purple-loosestrife) is a Flowering plant belonging to the family Lythraceae, native to Europe, Asia

Edible uses

Cattail has a wide variety of parts that are edible to humans. The rhizomes are a pleasant, nutritious and energy-rich food source, generally harvested from late Fall to early Spring. In Botany, a rhizome is a horizontal stem of a Plant that is usually found underground often sending out Roots and Shoots These are starchy, but also fibrous, so the starch must be scraped or sucked from the tough fibers. In addition to the rhizomes, cattails have little-known, underground, lateral stems that are quite tasty. In late spring, the bases of the leaves, while they are young and tender, can be eaten raw or cooked. As the flower spike is developing in early summer, it can be broken off and eaten, and in mid-summer, once the flowers are mature, the pollen can be collected and used as a flour supplement or thickener. Pollen is a fine to coarse powder consisting of microgametophytes ( pollen grains) which produce the male Gametes (sperm cells of

Stuffing

Typha seeds are very small, embedded in down parachutes, and very effectively wind-dispersed

The disintegrating heads are used by some birds to line their nests. The downy material was also used by Native Americans as tinder for starting fires. For indigenous peoples in the United States other than Hawaii and Alaska see also Native Americans in the United States. Tinder is easily combustible material used to ignite Fires by rudimentary methods

Native American tribes also used cattail down to line moccasins and papoose boards. The word Moccasin originates from the Algonquian language Powhatan word makasin (cognate to Massachusett mohkisson/mokussin, A cradle board is a typical North American Baby carrier used to keep babies secure and comfortable and at the same time allowing the mothers freedom to work and travel An Indian name for cattail meant, “fruit for papoose’s bed”. Today some people still use cattail down to stuff clothing items and pillows. ^[3]

The down has also been used to fill life vests in the same manner as kapok. A personal flotation device (also referred to as PFD, lifejacket, life preserver, Mae West, life vest, life saver, For the children's book see The Great Kapok Tree. Kapok ( Ceiba pentandra) is a tropical Tree of the order

If using the cattail for pillow stuffing you may be wise to use thick batting material, as the fluff may cause a reaction similar to hives and will be very itchy.

References