Cottongrasses in New England
The cottongrasses are a genus of flowering plants in the sedge family. There are six species of cottongrasses in New England, five of which are known to occur in all New England states. For more info about the cottongrasses in New England, see the following document:
- Cottongrasses in New England (googledoc)
The linked document contains identification tips, short descriptions, habitats, flowering phenology, and observation links for each of the species.
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Wonderful work...thanks for this!
Excellent resource. Thank you for compiling this!
I updated the googledoc with respect to the season of Tussock Cottongrass (Eriophorum vaginatum). Yesterday I was at the Morristown Bog and found that species at the very end of its season, with a few tufts of seeds clinging to stems here and there. (In contrast, Eriophorum virginicum was budding and flowering at its side.) Apparently Eriophorum vaginatum leads a double-life in New England…at the higher elevations, the season is shifted by two or three weeks.
Yesterday I found three species of Eriophorum (or so I claim) at Valcour Bog in Morristown. Not surprisingly, Eriophorum virginicum was budding and flowering throughout. The other two species have been tentatively identified as Eriophorum gracile and Eriophorum tenellum. Based on the keys in New Flora of Vermont (2015) and Flora Novae Angliae (2011), and my review of the (relatively few) observations in New England, there doesn't seem to be much (morphological) separation between the two species. My IDs were based on the length of the uppermost leaf blade (relative to its sheath) but I suspect that character alone may not be enough to distinguish the two.
To straighten this out, I need to go back to this place and take another look. I don't want to go back alone, however, since the quaking bog mat is some cause for concern. Yesterday I was concentrating more on my next step than on the field work at-hand.
At last count, there were eighteen observations of Eriophorum virginicum stuck at subfamily. Actually, one of those observations is not Eriophorum virginicum (since it doesn't have multiple long bracts) but I don't know how to exclude it from the previous list.
I just made a pass over a subset of observations of Rhynchospora alba observed in June and July, and sure enough, there were numerous observations of Eriophorum virginicum lurking in there. So now there are dozens of observations of Eriophorum virginicum stuck at subfamily.
cc: @tsn @michael_oldham @bickel
Fewer now.
Thanks Tom! The flowering phenology charts for this species are getting much better.
I went through the observations of Eriophorum virginicum stuck at subfamily and agree that all are E. virginicum. Nice to clean these up ... seems to be a common mistake!
Thanks Michael!
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