Sparganium eurycarpum

Broadfruit bur reed

Family: Typhaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Broadfruit bur reed is a California native perennial found in wetland habitats, typically growing in marshy areas and shallow water. Flowering from June to August, this plant produces distinctive white to cream-colored flower heads with separate staminate and pistillate clusters. Growing robustly to 2.5 meters tall, it develops thick, triangular stems that emerge from the water or nearby moist ground. Its leaves are thick and three-angled near the base, becoming flat or keeled toward the tips, with blades that can vary from thick to thin along the plant's height. The fruit is notable for its obconic shape, measuring 5 to 9 millimeters long with 3 to 6 distinct angles and a short 1 to 4 millimeter beak.

California counties: Modoc, Lake, Lassen, Orange, Plumas, San Joaquin, Santa Cruz, Sonoma, Alameda, Kern, Merced, San Bernardino, Riverside, San Luis Obispo, Mendocino, Marin, Santa Clara, Humboldt, Santa Barbara, San Benito, San Diego, Solano, Butte, Monterey, Los Angeles, Yolo

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