Cattails

Cattail (Typha latifolia)

2007 July 16

2007 July 31

2007 August 15

2008 April 23

I suppose we all know what a cattail looks like ... but hey, I needed an excuse to take a picture or two!

Some plants have any number of uses and this is one of them. Marsh critters, of course, munch on these but people can too (the starchy rhizomes, leaf blades, young flower spikes and the white, peeled, lower stem)! The birds use the seed fluff for nests; people can use it for pillow and mattress stuffing. The leaves can also be woven into mats and even clothing ... but one may need to take a few lessons first.

I know, these are supposed to be Cariboo plants, but I found this interesting Cattail in Vancouver and couldn't resist showing it:

2007 July 2

This is a "Lesser Cattail" (Typha angustifolia). It is not all that common. (I couldn't find it in my books so checked the genus "Typha" at E-Flora and voila.)

Arrowgrass

"Seaside Arrowgrass" (Triglochin maritima)

2008 July 30

2008 July 8

2008 July 30

We went for a walk by a lake we hadn't visited since the spring time. I inadvertently trod on the above plant and thought, what is this? I haven't seen this by the other lakes. We were experiencing a shower so I didn't take pictures on site. Rather, I brought a stalk home with me to photograph at my leisure. Unfortunately, I didn't get it in its flowering stage ... next year. There seemed to be a lot of them in that location.

This plant thrives in saline or alkaline conditions.