Juncus effusus (Soft Rush)

One of the most widely used wetland restoration grasses available, soft rush combines a confirmed obligate wetland status with genuine adaptability - it also tolerates periods of garden-soil drought, an unusual trait for a true wetland obligate.

Species Overview

Juncus effusus, or soft rush, is a perennial wetland plant with smooth, upright, cylindrical stems that grow 2 to 4 feet tall. It thrives in saturated soils, often forming dense clumps in wetlands, marshes, and along streambanks, and has a nearly cosmopolitan distribution, occurring throughout most of North America, Europe, and Asia.

Application

• Wetland restoration, erosion control, and stormwater management
• Rain gardens, retention basins, and bioswales
• Pond-edge plantings - tolerates up to 6 in. of standing water
• Wildlife habitat - seeds feed birds, provides amphibian and fish spawning habitat

Growing Conditions / Specification Data

• Light: Full Sun to Part Shade
• Soil/Moisture Tolerance: Saturated soils; tolerant of average garden soils and periods of drought once established
• Plant Type: Graminoid
• Mature Height: 2-4 ft.
• Fall Color: Insignificant/None
• Bloom Color / Period: Insignificant/None; June-September
• Wetland Indicator Status: OBL (Obligate Wetland)
• Native Range: Nearly cosmopolitan; native to most of North America
• Hydrology: Wet
• Root Depth: Shallow (Under 12 in.)
• Growth Rate: Rapid
• Drought Tolerance: Low
• Deer Resistance: Yes (Rarely Damaged)
• Shade Tolerance: Intermediate
• Salinity Tolerance: Moderate
• Flood Tolerance: Moderate - Tolerates consistently moist to seasonally saturated soil and brief periods of shallow standing water, but cannot tolerate permanent/sustained inundation; readily spreads by seed and rhizomes to form dense stands in wet soil, well suited to rain gardens and pond edges.
• Growth Habit: Clumping/Mounding - upright to arching stems
• USDA Hardiness Zones: 4-10
• Pollinator Value: None significant - wind-pollinated