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{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = ''Typha''
| image = Typha latifolia 02 bgiu.jpg
| image_width = 240px
| image_caption = ''[[Typha latifolia]]''
| regnum = [[Plantae]]
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Liliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Poales]]
| familia = '''Typhaceae'''
| familia_authority = [[Antoine Laurent de Jussieu|Juss.]]
| genus = '''''Typha'''''
| genus_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision = See text
}}
'''''Typha''''' is a [[genus]] of about eleven [[species]] of [[monocot]]yledonous flowering plants in the [[monogeneric]] family, '''Typhaceae'''. The genus has a largely [[Northern Hemisphere]] distribution, but is essentially [[cosmopolitan distribution|cosmopolitan]]. These plants are known as '''bulrush''' or '''bullrush''' (mainly in [[British English]]), '''cattail''' or '''punks''' (mainly in [[American English]]), or in some older British texts or the current guide book ''Collins Complete British Wildlife'' as '''Great Reedmace'''.
[[Image:Typha-cattails-in-indiana.jpg|thumb|''Typha'' plants at the edge of a small wetland in [[Marshall County, Indiana|Indiana]].]]
__TOC__
Cattails or bulrushes are [[wetland]] plants, typically 1 to 7 m tall (''T. minima'' is smaller: 0.5-1 m), with spongy, strap-like leaves and starchy, creeping stems ([[rhizome]]s). The leaves are alternate and mostly basal to a simple, jointless stem that eventually bears the flowers. The rhizomes spread horizontally beneath the surface of muddy ground to start new upright growth, and the spread of cattails is an important part of the process of open water bodies being converted to vegetated [[marshland]] and eventually dry land.
''Typha'' plants are [[monoecious]], wind-pollinated, and bear [[unisexual]] flowers developing in dense, complex [[raceme|spike]]s. The male flower spike develops at the top of the vertical stem, above the female flower spike (see figure below). The male (staminate) flowers are reduced to a pair of [[stamen]]s and hairs and wither once the [[pollen]] is shed, leaving a short, bare stem portion above the female [[inflorescence]]. The dense cluster of female flowers forms a cylindrical spike some 10 to as much as 40 cm long and 1 to 4 cm broad. Seeds are minute (about 0.2 mm long), and attached to a thin hair or stalk, which effects wind dispersal. ''Typha'' are often among the first wetland plants to colonize areas of newly exposed wet mud.
Some classifications include the genus ''Sparganium'' ([[Sparganiaceae]]) in Typhaceae.
== Species ==
*''[[Typha angustifolia]]'' - Lesser Bulrush or Narrow Leaf Cattail
*''Typha angustifolia x T. latifolia'' - Hybrid or White Cattail
*''[[Typha domingensis]]'' - Southern Cattail
*''[[Typha latifolia]]'' - Common Cattail
*''[[Typha laxmannii]]'' - Laxman's Bulrush
*''[[Typha minima]]'' - Dwarf Bulrush
*''[[Typha orientalis]]'' - Raupo
*''[[Typha shuttleworthii]]'' - Shuttleworth's Bulrush
The most widespread species is ''Typha latifolia'', extending across the entire temperate Northern Hemisphere. ''T. angustifolia'' is nearly as widespread, but does not extend so far north. ''T. domingensis'' is a more southerly [[The Americas|American]] species, extending from the [[United States|U.S.]] to [[South America]], while ''T. laxmannii'', ''T. minima'' and ''T. shuttleworthii'' are largely restricted to [[Asia]] and parts of southern [[Europe]].
[[Image:Typha latifolia 02 bgiu.jpg|thumb|left|''Typha latifolia'']]
''Typha'' plants grow along lake margins and in marshes, often in dense colonies, and are sometimes considered a weed in managed wetlands. The plant's root systems help prevent [[erosion]], and the plants themselves are often home to many insects, birds and [[amphibia]]ns.
In North America, the native cattails are increasingly being supplanted by the [[Invasive species|invasive]] [[purple loosestrife]] ''Lythrum salicaria''.
==Edible uses==
Cattail has a wide variety of parts that are edible to humans. The [[rhizomes]] are a pleasant, nutritious and energy-rich food source, generally harves
ted from late Fall to early Spring. These are starchy, but also fibrous, so the starch must be scraped or sucked from the tough fibers. In addition to the rhizomes, cattails have little-known, underground, lateral stems that are quite tasty. In late Spring, the bases of the leaves, while they are young and tender, can be eaten raw or cooked. As the flower spike is developing in early Summer, it can be broken off and eaten, and in mid-Summer, once the flowers are mature, the [[pollen]] can be collected and used as a flour supplement or thickener.
==Stuffing==
[[Image:IMG 1077.JPG|thumb|''Typha'' seeds are very small, embedded in down parachutes, and very effectively wind-dispersed]]
The disintegrating heads are used by some birds to line their nests. The downy material was also used by [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American]]s as [[tinder]] for starting fires.
Native American tribes also used cattail down to line [[moccasins]] and [[Cradle board|papoose boards]]. An Indian name for cattail meant, “fruit for papoose’s bed”. Today some people still use cattail down to stuff clothing items and pillows.
The down has also been used to fill [[Personal flotation device|life vests]] in the same manner as [[kapok]].
==External links==
* [http://cattails.wordpress.com International Society Of People Who Sleep With Cattail Pillows]
[[Category:Poales]]
[[Category:Root vegetables]]
[[Category:Inflorescence vegetables]]
[[Category:Underutilized crops]]
| color = lightgreen
| name = ''Typha''
| image = Typha latifolia 02 bgiu.jpg
| image_width = 240px
| image_caption = ''[[Typha latifolia]]''
| regnum = [[Plantae]]
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Liliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Poales]]
| familia = '''Typhaceae'''
| familia_authority = [[Antoine Laurent de Jussieu|Juss.]]
| genus = '''''Typha'''''
| genus_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision = See text
}}
'''''Typha''''' is a [[genus]] of about eleven [[species]] of [[monocot]]yledonous flowering plants in the [[monogeneric]] family, '''Typhaceae'''. The genus has a largely [[Northern Hemisphere]] distribution, but is essentially [[cosmopolitan distribution|cosmopolitan]]. These plants are known as '''bulrush''' or '''bullrush''' (mainly in [[British English]]), '''cattail''' or '''punks''' (mainly in [[American English]]), or in some older British texts or the current guide book ''Collins Complete British Wildlife'' as '''Great Reedmace'''.
[[Image:Typha-cattails-in-indiana.jpg|thumb|''Typha'' plants at the edge of a small wetland in [[Marshall County, Indiana|Indiana]].]]
__TOC__
Cattails or bulrushes are [[wetland]] plants, typically 1 to 7 m tall (''T. minima'' is smaller: 0.5-1 m), with spongy, strap-like leaves and starchy, creeping stems ([[rhizome]]s). The leaves are alternate and mostly basal to a simple, jointless stem that eventually bears the flowers. The rhizomes spread horizontally beneath the surface of muddy ground to start new upright growth, and the spread of cattails is an important part of the process of open water bodies being converted to vegetated [[marshland]] and eventually dry land.
''Typha'' plants are [[monoecious]], wind-pollinated, and bear [[unisexual]] flowers developing in dense, complex [[raceme|spike]]s. The male flower spike develops at the top of the vertical stem, above the female flower spike (see figure below). The male (staminate) flowers are reduced to a pair of [[stamen]]s and hairs and wither once the [[pollen]] is shed, leaving a short, bare stem portion above the female [[inflorescence]]. The dense cluster of female flowers forms a cylindrical spike some 10 to as much as 40 cm long and 1 to 4 cm broad. Seeds are minute (about 0.2 mm long), and attached to a thin hair or stalk, which effects wind dispersal. ''Typha'' are often among the first wetland plants to colonize areas of newly exposed wet mud.
Some classifications include the genus ''Sparganium'' ([[Sparganiaceae]]) in Typhaceae.
== Species ==
*''[[Typha angustifolia]]'' - Lesser Bulrush or Narrow Leaf Cattail
*''Typha angustifolia x T. latifolia'' - Hybrid or White Cattail
*''[[Typha domingensis]]'' - Southern Cattail
*''[[Typha latifolia]]'' - Common Cattail
*''[[Typha laxmannii]]'' - Laxman's Bulrush
*''[[Typha minima]]'' - Dwarf Bulrush
*''[[Typha orientalis]]'' - Raupo
*''[[Typha shuttleworthii]]'' - Shuttleworth's Bulrush
The most widespread species is ''Typha latifolia'', extending across the entire temperate Northern Hemisphere. ''T. angustifolia'' is nearly as widespread, but does not extend so far north. ''T. domingensis'' is a more southerly [[The Americas|American]] species, extending from the [[United States|U.S.]] to [[South America]], while ''T. laxmannii'', ''T. minima'' and ''T. shuttleworthii'' are largely restricted to [[Asia]] and parts of southern [[Europe]].
[[Image:Typha latifolia 02 bgiu.jpg|thumb|left|''Typha latifolia'']]
''Typha'' plants grow along lake margins and in marshes, often in dense colonies, and are sometimes considered a weed in managed wetlands. The plant's root systems help prevent [[erosion]], and the plants themselves are often home to many insects, birds and [[amphibia]]ns.
In North America, the native cattails are increasingly being supplanted by the [[Invasive species|invasive]] [[purple loosestrife]] ''Lythrum salicaria''.
==Edible uses==
Cattail has a wide variety of parts that are edible to humans. The [[rhizomes]] are a pleasant, nutritious and energy-rich food source, generally harves
ted from late Fall to early Spring. These are starchy, but also fibrous, so the starch must be scraped or sucked from the tough fibers. In addition to the rhizomes, cattails have little-known, underground, lateral stems that are quite tasty. In late Spring, the bases of the leaves, while they are young and tender, can be eaten raw or cooked. As the flower spike is developing in early Summer, it can be broken off and eaten, and in mid-Summer, once the flowers are mature, the [[pollen]] can be collected and used as a flour supplement or thickener.
==Stuffing==
[[Image:IMG 1077.JPG|thumb|''Typha'' seeds are very small, embedded in down parachutes, and very effectively wind-dispersed]]
The disintegrating heads are used by some birds to line their nests. The downy material was also used by [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American]]s as [[tinder]] for starting fires.
Native American tribes also used cattail down to line [[moccasins]] and [[Cradle board|papoose boards]]. An Indian name for cattail meant, “fruit for papoose’s bed”. Today some people still use cattail down to stuff clothing items and pillows.
The down has also been used to fill [[Personal flotation device|life vests]] in the same manner as [[kapok]].
==External links==
* [http://cattails.wordpress.com International Society Of People Who Sleep With Cattail Pillows]
[[Category:Poales]]
[[Category:Root vegetables]]
[[Category:Inflorescence vegetables]]
[[Category:Underutilized crops]]
