Juncus pauciflorus
Common name
leafless rush
Synonyms
Juncus gunnii Hook.f., J. pauciflorus var. gunnii (Hook.f.) Buch.
Family
Juncaceae
Flora category
Vascular – Native
Endemic taxon
No
Endemic genus
No
Endemic family
No
Structural class
Rushes & Allied Plants
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
JUNPAU
Current conservation status
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2017 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS). This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2012 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Authors: By Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, John W. Barkla, Shannel P. Courtney, Paul D. Champion, Leon R. Perrie, Sarah M. Beadel, Kerry A. Ford, Ilse Breitwieser, Ines Schönberger, Rowan Hindmarsh-Walls, Peter B. Heenan and Kate Ladley.
2012 | Threatened – Nationally Vulnerable | Qualifiers: DP, SO, Sp
Previous conservation statuses
2009 | At Risk – Declining | Qualifiers: DP, SO, Sp
2004 | Not Threatened
Distribution
Indigenous. North, South and Stewart Islands. Present in Australia
Habitat
Coastal to lowland (often on northern offshore islands) in damp ground and hollows under light scrub, in pasture, on swamp margins, in dune swales under scrub or within coastal forest.
Features
Slender, clumps with sprawling to almost lianoid stems spreading widely from base. Rhizome 2-3 mm diameter, horizontal, near surface or above ground, easily pulled from soil. Flowering stems 0.25-1.00 m long, 0.75-2.00 mm diameter, bright green to reddish green, smooth, glossy to lustrous, internal pith continuous; leaves absent; basal bracts very short, conspicuously dark red-brown, closely sheathing. Inflorescence apparently lateral, rather lax and open, with flowers evenly spaced, often rather remote, on slender, flexible, more or less curved branchlets. Flowers 2.5-3.0 mm long; tepals light greenish brown. Stamens 6. Capsule 2.5-3.5 mm long, usually distinctly > tepals, ovoid to almost oblong, light brown to red-brown, often very dark towards apex.
Similar taxa
The rather widely spreading, loose, almost floppy, lianoid, bright green stems and slender, flexible branchlets are especially distinctive. Because it has continuous pith and six stamens it usually keys out with J. pallidus R.Br., which is a very different, robust rush up to 2 m tall, with broad (3-8 mm diameter) erect, light green to glaucous, soft rather than wiry stems.
Flowering
November - January
Flower colours
Brown, Green
Fruiting
November - April
Life cycle
Mucilaginous seeds are dispersed by attachment, wind and water (Thorsen et al., 2009).
Propagation technique
Easy from fresh seed. Can be grown from rooted pieces and by the division of whole plants but resents root disturbance.
Threats
Rather uncommon
Etymology
juncus: From the Latin jungere ‘to tie or bind’, the stems of some species being used to make cord (Johnson and Smith)
pauciflorus: Few flowers
Attribution
Moore, L.B.; Edgar, E. 1970: Flora of New Zealand. Vol. I. Government Printer, Wellington.
References and further reading
Johnson, A. T. and Smith, H. A (1986). Plant Names Simplified: Their pronunciation, derivation and meaning. Landsman Bookshop Ltd: Buckenhill, UK.
Moore, L.B.; Edgar, E. 1970: Flora of New Zealand. Vol. I. Government Printer, Wellington.
Thorsen, M. J.; Dickinson, K. J. M.; Seddon, P. J. 2009. Seed dispersal systems in the New Zealand flora. Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 11: 285-309