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Introduction
Alpine clubrush (a.k.a.) alpine cotton-grass, is a native, perennial rhizomatous species that is found in North America at higher latitudes. It is a distinctive circumpolar peatland species which typifies sites of mineral enrichment, where it occurs with other mineral-loving species such as cattails. In BC, it is found across the province, exclusive of the coast islands, in bogs, swamps, fens and wet meadows in the montane and subalpine zones. Flowers occur in solitary spikes. Alpine cotton-grass differs from true cotton-grasses (genus Eriophorum) in having few (6-8) bristles, while cottongrasses typically have lots of bristles.
View a video of this species in the field, with Tony Reznicek
Species Information
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expanded illustration for this species.
General: Perennial herb from short, freely rooting rhizomes; stems more or less densely clustered, in rows, sharply triangular in cross-section, rough on the angles, (5) 10-40 cm tall.
Leaves: More or less reduced, scalelike at the base of the stems, with 1 or sometimes 2, more normally-developed leaves above the base; sheaths straw-coloured to brownish, not cross-wrinkled; blades narrow, 5-12 mm long, rough on the margins, the hairs directed forward or upward, the tips firm, blunt, somewhat expanded and cartilaginous.
Flowers: Spikes solitary, terminal, medium or light brown, 5-7 mm long, many-flowered; involucral bracts lacking.
Fruits: Scales 2 or 3, chestnut, lanceolate to egg-shaped, blunt, the lowermost egg-shaped, up to as long as the spikes, with prominent, thickened midribs which are exserted as broad, blunt awns or small, short, abrupt points, 0.5-2 mm long; perianth bristles 6, white, flattened, smooth, crisped, elongate, much surpassing the scales, at maturity forming silky white tufts extending 1-2.5 cm beyond the end of the spikes; achenes purplish-brown, 3-angled, narrowly egg-shaped, about 1.5 mm long, minutely abruptly sharp-pointed.
Bogs, swamps, fens and wet meadows in the montane and subalpine zones; infrequent in BC east of the Coast Mountains; circumpolar, N to AK, YT and NT, E to NF and S to ME, MA, NY, MI, MN, MT and ID; Eurasia.
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)
