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Common Rush
Juncus patens
  
About Common Rush (Juncus patens) 64 Nurseries Carry This Plant With its upright growth habit and distinctive flowering stems, Common Rush (Juncus patens) is a grass-like evergreen perennial that adds visual interest to the garden. Common Rush is native to wet, marshy areas of California. It is also found in Oregon and Washington.

The tall, wire-like stems are gray-green in color and grow in clumps that can slowly spread over time.
Common Rush has small golden flower clusters that bloom along the stems, rather than at the tips. After flowering, the plant develops bunches of spherical red fruits.

Common Rush is normally found in areas that are moist year-round, but it is a tough plant that can also grow in areas that are seasonally dry. In the garden, it can be planted near water features but it also does well in dry areas with minimal summer irrigation. Common Rush is often used in lawn replacement applications, where its tall, rigid stems complement low-growing groundcover plants.
Bornstein, C., Fross, D., O’Brien, B. (2005). California Native Plants for the Garden. Cachuma Press. “Juncus Patens, California Gray Rush, Grass-Like,.” Www.smgrowers.com, www.smgrowers.com/products/plants/plantdisplay.asp?plant_id=892#:~:text=Juncus%20patens%20. Accessed 12 Feb. 2024. ‌
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Grasses

Size
Size
1 - 3 ft tall
3 ft wide

Form
Form
Fountain

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Moderate

Dormancy
Dormancy
Evergreen

Fragrance
Fragrance
None

Flower Color
Flower Color
Red, Brown

Wildlife Supported
 


 
Butterflies & moths hosted ( 4 likely * ) SHOW ALL

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Full Sun

Moisture
Moisture
Moderate - High

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Max 1x / month once established

Nurseries
Nurseries

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Very Easy

Cold Tolerance
Cold Tolerance
Tolerates cold to 15° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Slow, Standing

Soil Description
Soil Description
Tolerates a variety of soils. Soil PH: 5.5 - 7.0

Common uses
Common uses
Bogs and Ponds, Deer Resistant

Companion Plants
Companion Plants
Use with other plants of moist areas, such as Indigo Bush (Amorpha fruticosa), Sagewort (Artemisia douglasiana), Mule Fat (Baccharis salicifolia), Dogwood (Cornus sp.), Sedge (Carex sp.), Currant/Gooseberry (Ribes sp.), wild Rose (Rosa sp.), willow (Salix sp.), and wild grape (Vitis sp.).

Propagation
Propagation?
For propagating by seed: No treatment.

Sunset Zones
Sunset Zones?
4*, 5*, 7, 8, 9, 14*, 15*, 16*, 17*, 18*, 19*, 20*, 21*, 22*, 23*, 24*

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Usually found in moist areas such as stream banks, springs and seeps, but also occurs in areas of seasonal dryness such as ephemeral streams and ponds

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 9.3" - 103.4", Summer Precipitation: 0.14" - 2.96", Coldest Month: 37.1" - 55.7", Hottest Month: 57.3" - 78.2", Humidity: 0.01" - 26.20", Elevation: 4" - 5053"

Alternative Names
Common Names: Spreading Rush


Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


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