Juncus chlorocephalus

Greenheaded rush

Family: Juncaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Greenheaded rush is a California native perennial found in northern and central Sierra Nevada in wet areas of montane conifer forest at elevations of 1,200 to 3,100 meters. Flowering with white to pink or greenish flowers in compact clusters, this rush has distinctive perianth parts about 4 millimeters long with pale green to red midveins. Growing 12 to 50 centimeters tall with a stout, mat-forming rhizome, it develops sparse cauline leaves with narrow cylindric blades less than 1 millimeter wide. Its leaves emerge from purple-red basal sheaths with scarious appendages 4 to 6 millimeters long. The fruit is small, brown, and three-angled, with tiny asymmetric light brown seeds measuring just 0.6 millimeters.

Habitat: Wet areas in montane conifer forest

Elevation: 1200-3100 m

Bioregions: n&ampc SN

California counties: Alpine, Amador, Mariposa, Nevada, Tuolumne, Calaveras, El Dorado, Mono, Placer, Sierra, Plumas

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.