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Juncus balticus

Common name:	Baltic Rush	Family:	Juncaceae
Author:	Willd.	Botanical references:	17, 50, 200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	Although no reports of toxicity have been seen for this species, there is a report that one member of this genus is possibly toxic to mammals[76]..
Range:	N. Europe, Northern N. America, N. Asia in boreal areas.
Habitat:	Damp to wet soils, usually in saline conditions[212].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Baltic Rush [B,FEIS,P,L], Noordse Rus [D],
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Juncales. Rush family

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 1m at a fast rate. It is hardy to zone 3. It is in flower from June to August. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Wind. We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils and can grow in saline soil. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist or wet soil and can grow in water.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Pond, Bog Garden.

Edible Uses

Drink; Seed; Sweetener.

A sugar forms along the top of the plant. This can be gathered and eaten as candy[257].
Seed[257]. No more details are given but the seed is very small[K].
The stems are used to make a fermented drink[257].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

Weaving.

The stems are used in making woven baskets, thatching, weaving mats etc[212, 257].
The basal portions of the stems have been used as a light yellow-brown decoration on baskets[257].

Cultivation details

Easily grown in a moist soil, bog garden or shallow water[1, 200]. Prefers a heavy soil in sun or light shade[200].
Plants can form large clumps and spread aggressively at the roots[200, 212].

Propagation

Seed - surface sow in pots in a cold frame in early spring and keep the compost moist. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in the summer if they have grown sufficiently, otherwise in late spring of the following year.
Division in spring. Very easy, larger clumps can be replanted direct into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up smaller clumps and grow them on in a cold frame until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the spring.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[FEIS] Data (Uses, Ecology, Fire Effects) from the USDA Forestry Service Fire Effects Information System.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for the family Juncaceae.

[CHINA] Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.

[50] ? Flora Europaea Cambridge University Press 1964
An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.

[76] Cooper. M. and Johnson. A. Poisonous Plants in Britain and their Effects on Animals and Man. HMSO 1984 ISBN 0112425291
Concentrates mainly on the effects of poisonous plants to livestock.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[212] Craighead. J., Craighead. F. and Davis. R. A Field Guide to Rocky Mountain Wildflowers The Riverside Press 1963 ISBN 63-7093
Excellent little pocket guide to the area, covering 590 species and often giving details of their uses.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

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Bibliography

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963

This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Juncus+balticus
This page (US) http://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_html?Juncus+balticus

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We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.