Nature today | Juncus Marginatus, second American Russian in a short time

Juncus marginatus

Juncus marginatus Its natural distribution is in North America, from Canada to southeastern Texas, Central America and South America to Venezuela, southeastern Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina. There it grows in open swamps on sand, clay and peat. As far as is known, this recent discovery near Eindhoven is the second time that American-Russian has appeared in Europe. The first discovery was made in 2003 in northern Italy.

The plant belongs to the division Graminifoli, A group of Russians, in which the leaf is grass-like and has no partitions inside the leaf. Only then do you see the plant in the most dramatic way. In English this plant is called Grass-leaf rush. The plant has a common appearance, with open inflorescences that are small clusters of five grass-like leaves and flowers on slightly flattened flower stalks. The plant also has underground root nodules. These root nodules keep the plant alive even in the most extreme conditions.

Permeability

Juncus marginatus He was the second American Russian in a short time to appear in a similar situation in the Netherlands, and it is difficult to find out how he got here. It is obvious that human activity plays a role in both cases. Earlier, in 2017, American swamp rush (Junkus achuminatus⁇ Discovered in Hois der Height, near Tilburg. There were species in the hundreds of thousands of specimens. Considering the fact that the plant is not yet dominant compared to native plants, no control measures have been taken at present, considering the high cost that can be expected in large numbers.

In the first meeting with Juncus marginatus Only a few plants were thought to be involved, but after further visits it soon turned into thousands of plants. In this new situation, in principle, we still do not know enough about how this newcomer will behave. The species can be considered (partially) invasive due to the presence of root nodules. As current population size control is still possible and cheaper, it was decided in consultation with Naturalis and NVWA to proceed with its removal. The fact that this species is found in vulnerable environments, i.e. in moist, nutrient deficient sand, also plays an important role here. Small sunflower⁇ Slough⁇ Brown crane margin⁇ Wide-flowered rosette And Gentianஇணைந்து In collaboration with the site owner Brabants Landschap, the plants were removed. Follow-up is desirable because the Russians have long-lasting seeds that will germinate again when the seed bank emerges.

Text: Chipke Kong Crop & Keert Peters
Photos: Chipke Kong Crop