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|image_caption=Giant Reed (''Arundo donax'')

|image_caption=Giant Reed (''Arundo donax'')

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'''''Arundo donax''''' L. ('''Giant Cane''') is a tall [[Perennial plant|perennial]] [[cane]] growing in damp soils, either fresh or moderately saline. Other common names include Carrizo, Spanish cane, wild cane, giant reed and arundo. It is native to eastern Asia but has been widely planted and naturalised in the temperate and subtropical regions of both hemispheres (Herrera & Dudley 2003), especially in the Mediterranean, [[California]] and the [[Caribbean]].<ref>{{cite web | title = Catalogue of Life 2008 | url = http://www.catalogueoflife.org/show_species_details.php?record_id=726103}}</ref><ref>http://ucce.ucdavis.edu/datastore/detailreport.cfm?usernumber=8&surveynumber=182 University of California website, Agriculture and Natural Resources</ref> It forms dense stands, and can be invasive.

'''''Arundo donax''''' L. ('''Giant Cane''') is a tall [[Perennial plant|perennial]] [[cane]] growing in damp soils, either fresh or moderately saline. Other common names include Carrizo, Spanish cane, wild cane, giant reed and arundo. It is native to eastern Asia but has been widely planted and naturalised in the temperate and subtropical regions of both hemispheres (Herrera & Dudley 2003), especially in the Mediterranean, [[California]] and the [[Caribbean]].<ref>http://www.catalogueoflife.org/show_species_details.php?record_id=726103</ref> It forms dense stands, and can be invasive.

Generally growing to 6 m, in ideal conditions it can exceed 10 m, with hollow stems 2-3&nbsp;cm diameter. The [[leaf|leaves]] are alternate, 30-60&nbsp;cm long and 2-6&nbsp;cm broad with a tapered tip, grey-green, and have a hairy tuft at the base. Overall, it resembles an outsize [[Phragmites|common reed]] (''Phragmites australis'') or a [[bamboo]] (Subfamily Bambusoideae).

Generally growing to 6 m, in ideal conditions it can exceed 10 m, with hollow stems 2-3 cm diameter. The [[leaf|leaves]] are alternate, 30-60 cm long and 2-6 cm broad with a tapered tip, grey-green, and have a hairy tuft at the base. Overall, it resembles an outsize [[Phragmites|common reed]] (''Phragmites australis'') or a [[bamboo]] (Subfamily Bambusoideae).

''Arundo donax'' [[flower]]s in late summer, bearing upright, feathery plumes 40-60&nbsp;cm long, but the seeds are rarely fertile. Instead, it mostly reproduces vegetatively, by underground [[rhizome]]s. The rhizomes are tough and fibrous and form knotty, spreading mats that penetrate deep into the soil up to one metre deep (Alden et al., 1998; Mackenzie, 2004). Stem and rhizome pieces less than 5&nbsp;cm long and containing a single [[Node (botany)|node]] readily sprouted under a variety of conditions (Boose and Holt, 1999). This vegetative growth appears to be well adapted to floods, which may break up individual ''A. donax'' clumps, spreading the pieces, which may sprout and colonise further downstream (Mackenzie 2004).

''Arundo donax'' [[flower]]s in late summer, bearing upright, feathery plumes 40-60 cm long, but the seeds are rarely fertile. Instead, it mostly reproduces vegetatively, by underground [[rhizome]]s. The rhizomes are tough and fibrous and form knotty, spreading mats that penetrate deep into the soil up to one metre deep (Alden et al., 1998; Mackenzie, 2004). Stem and rhizome pieces less than 5 cm long and containing a single [[Node (botany)|node]] readily sprouted under a variety of conditions (Boose and Holt, 1999). This vegetative growth appears to be well adapted to floods, which may break up individual ''A. donax'' clumps, spreading the pieces, which may sprout and colonise further downstream (Mackenzie 2004).

It uses large amounts of water from its wet habitat to supply the rapid rate of growth, up to 5&nbsp;cm per day in spring (Perdue 1958). It is capable of growing in dense stands, which may crowd out other plants and prevent their growth.

It uses large amounts of water from its wet habitat to supply the rapid rate of growth, up to 5 cm per day in spring (Perdue 1958). It is capable of growing in dense stands, which may crowd out other plants and prevent their growth.

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