Juncus saximontanus

Rocky mountain rush, Rocky Mountain Rush

Family: Juncaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Rocky mountain rush is a California native perennial found in the Klamath Ranges, High Cascade Range, Sierra Nevada, southern California mountains, and Great Basin in wet places and montane conifer forest at elevations of 1,500 to 2,900 meters. With flat leaf blades 2 to 5 millimeters wide and overlapping bases, this rush forms dense clusters of pale to dark brown flowers. Growing 30 to 60 centimeters tall with a stout, creeping rhizome, it develops multiple flower clusters containing 4 to 25 individual flowers. Its leaves have distinctive membranous sheath margins and crosswalls that are generally incomplete, creating a unique architectural structure. The plant produces small oblong fruits with an abruptly short beak, slightly longer or shorter than its pale brown perianth parts.

Habitat: Wet places, montane conifer forest

Elevation: 1500-2900 m

Bioregions: KR, CaRH, SNH, SnGb, SnBr, SnJt, GB, DMtns

California counties: San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Siskiyou, Fresno, Humboldt, Mariposa, Mono, Trinity, Inyo, Riverside, Modoc, Placer, Plumas, Sierra, Kern, Tulare, Tuolumne, Shasta

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