Eleocharis radicans
Creeping spikerush
Family: Cyperaceae · Type: Grass · Native
Eleocharis radicans (Creeping spikerush) is a native California grass in the Cyperaceae family, recognized by diminutive size, spongy cylindric stems, and tiny spikelets.
Creeping spikerush is a California native perennial found in coastal regions, the North Coast Ranges, Central Valley, Central Coast, and southwestern California in exposed soil, shallow water, streams, marshes, and seeps at elevations of 100 to 1,400 meters. Flowering from spring to winter, this plant produces delicate, colorless to straw-colored flower bracts in small, narrow spikelets. Growing with extremely thin, spongy stems 1 to 12 centimeters tall and weak rhizomes less than half a millimeter in diameter, it forms dense, low-growing clusters. Its leaf sheaths are particularly fragile, often disintegrating and ending in blunt tips, with distinctive three-sided fruits marked by approximately seven longitudinal ridges. The tiny fruit, often nearly white, bears four perianth bristles and measures less than one millimeter wide.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 25 sympatric species; key features are diminutive size, spongy cylindric stems, and tiny spikelets
Habitat and range
Habitat: Uncommon. Exposed soil or shallow water of shores, streams, marshes, seeps
Elevation: 100-1400 m
California counties: Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, San Diego, Fresno, Humboldt, Kern, Riverside, San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Sonoma, Tehama, Tulare, Tuolumne, Mendocino, Santa Cruz, Napa, Butte, Glenn, Yuba
Outside California: to Michigan, Florida, West Indies, South America, Hawaii
Bloom period
Eleocharis radicans blooms Spring-winter.
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 radicans native to California?
Yes. Eleocharis radicans is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Eleocharis radicans bloom?
Eleocharis radicans blooms Spring-winter.
Where in California does Eleocharis radicans grow?
Eleocharis radicans occurs in Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, San Diego, Fresno, Humboldt, Kern, Riverside and other counties, at elevations of 100-1400 m.
What plant family does Eleocharis radicans belong to?
Eleocharis radicans is in the Cyperaceae family, genus Eleocharis.
What habitat does Eleocharis radicans grow in?
Eleocharis radicans grows in Uncommon. Exposed soil or shallow water of shores, streams, marshes, seeps.
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.