Eleocharis quinqueflora
Fewflower spikerush
(c) Steve Matson, some rights reserved (CC BY) · licence
Family: Cyperaceae · Type: Grass · Native
Eleocharis quinqueflora (Fewflower spikerush) is a native California grass in the Cyperaceae family, recognized by 25 co-occurring species; bulbs, few flowers, and beaked fruits.
Fewflower spikerush is a California native perennial found in the Klamath Ranges, northern Coast Ranges, Cascade Range, Sierra Nevada, Sacramento Valley, southern Coast Ranges, San Bernardino Mountains, San Jacinto Mountains, and Great Basin in wet meadows, fens, seeps, and shores at elevations of 40 to 3,600 meters. Flowering from spring to summer, this plant produces small spikelets 4 to 8 millimeters long with 3 to 8 flower bracts. Growing in small mats with thin cylindric stems 5 to 30 centimeters tall, it forms distinctive stem-tufts with a swollen base that often includes small bulbs. Its leaves have firm, persistent sheaths with truncate to acute tips, emerging from a weak rhizome. The fruit is a small, 3-sided structure 1.3 to 2.3 millimeters long, often with a beak-like tip and occasionally accompanied by 3 to 6 vestigial perianth bristles.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 25 co-occurring species; bulbs, few flowers, and beaked fruits are diagnostic
Habitat and range
Habitat: Uncommon, local. Wet meadows, fens, seeps, shores
Elevation: 40-3600 m
California counties: Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara, Inyo, Nevada, Tulare, Mono, Butte, Fresno, Lassen, Modoc, Monterey, Plumas, Riverside, Sierra, Yuba, Siskiyou, Tehama, Shasta, Tuolumne, Placer, Sonoma, Madera, El Dorado, Lake, Calaveras, Trinity, Mariposa, Humboldt, San Diego, Alpine
Outside California: to Alaska, eastern Canada, Greenland, New Jersey, Eurasia
Bloom period
Eleocharis quinqueflora blooms Spring-summer.
How to tell it apart
vs Carex: Eleocharis has single spikelet with no bracts below, Carex has leafy bracts and multiple spikes.; vs Isolepis: Eleocharis has no bracts below spikelet, Isolepis has conspicuous leaf-like bracts extending beyond flowers.; vs Schoenoplectus: Eleocharis has single terminal spikelet, Schoenoplectus has multiple spikelets in clusters.; vs Juncus: Eleocharis spikelets are flattened oval, Juncus flowers are round with visible petals in clusters.; vs Equisetum: Eleocharis has grass-like stems with flower spikelets, Equisetum has jointed hollow stems with cone-like structures.
Frequently asked questions
Is Eleocharis quinqueflora native to California?
Yes. Eleocharis quinqueflora is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Eleocharis quinqueflora bloom?
Eleocharis quinqueflora blooms Spring-summer.
Where in California does Eleocharis quinqueflora grow?
Eleocharis quinqueflora occurs in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara, Inyo, Nevada, Tulare, Mono and other counties, at elevations of 40-3600 m.
What plant family does Eleocharis quinqueflora belong to?
Eleocharis quinqueflora is in the Cyperaceae family, genus Eleocharis.
What habitat does Eleocharis quinqueflora grow in?
Eleocharis quinqueflora grows in Uncommon, local. Wet meadows, fens, seeps, shores.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · Index of California Plant Names · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-07
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.