Ovate spikerush
Eleocharis ovata · Aquatic plants
Flowers or seeds · Photo: Thomas Ebner / CC BY
Also called Blunt spikerush, Eleocharis obtusa
How to identify Ovate spikerush
- Small clumps of soft round stems 2 to 16 inches
- Egg shaped brown spikelet at the tip
- No rhizomes; an annual
- Grows on exposed mud
Similar plants
Common spikerush has rhizomes and narrower spikelets; needle spikerush is much finer.
Growth profile
| Growing season | Germinates as water drops in late spring or summer, flowers in mid to late summer and dies in fall. |
|---|---|
| Starts growing | Warm exposed mud, about 60 F |
| Light | Needs full sun |
| Depth | Exposed mud to a few inches of water |
| How it spreads | Seeds |
| Habitat | Muddy pond shores, drawdown zones and ditch bottoms. |
Why it matters in a lake
Appears quickly on exposed mud when water levels fall; seeds feed waterfowl and shorebirds.
Where it is found
- Idaho: Occasional
- Oregon: Occasional
- Wyoming: Rare
Classification
| Kingdom | Plantae |
|---|---|
| Phylum | Tracheophyta |
| Class | Magnoliopsida |
| Order | Poales |
| Family | Cyperaceae |
| Scientific name | Eleocharis ovata |
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