Triglochin maritima is a species of flowering plant in the arrowgrass family Juncaginaceae. It is found in brackish marshes, freshwater marshes, wet sandy beaches, fens, damp grassland and bogs. It has a circumboreal distribution, occurring throughout the northern Northern Hemisphere. In the British Isles it is common on the coast, but very rare inland.
| Sea arrowgrass | |
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Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Order: | Alismatales |
| Family: | Juncaginaceae |
| Genus: | Triglochin |
| Species: | T. maritima
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| Binomial name | |
| Triglochin maritima L., 1753
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| Synonyms[2] | |
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List
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Description
editIt is similar to marsh arrowgrass (Triglochin palustris) but has the following differences: it has stolons, is stouter.[3] The leaves are fleshy and not furrowed above. It is not very aromatic.[3] The raceme is more dense and like sea plantain. The flowers are fleshier.[4] The fruits are oval, 4 mm long, 2 mm wide.[3]
It varies in height from 200–750 mm (8–30 in). It flowers in May to August; flowers are greenish, 3 petalled, edged with purple, 3 mm (1⁄8 in) across, in a long spike.[5][6] Common names include seaside arrowgrass,[7] common arrowgrass, sea arrowgrass and shore arrowgrass.[citation needed]
It can be an annual or perennial.[8]
Triglochin concinna is a synonym of this species.[9]
This plant is believed to be toxic, as it can produce cyanide. However, this is usually when the plant is distressed in drought conditions or due to over harvesting, usually by grazing animals. There is a common belief that this species has been known to cause losses in cattle, with green leaves being more toxic than dried material, yet sheep and deer graze on the plant, especially in rural seaside areas. It could be that belief in the plants' toxicity is apocryphal and based on anecdotal evidence.[10][4]
References
edit
- ^ NatureServe (2024). "Triglochin maritima". Arlington, Virginia. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
- ^ "Triglochin maritima L." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
- ^ a b c Rose, Francis (2006). The Wild Flower Key. Frederick Warne & Co. p. 488. ISBN 978-0-7232-5175-0.
- ^ a b C. Dwight Marsh, A. B. Clawson, and G. C. Roe Jr (1929). Arrow grass as a Stock-Poisoning Plant. United States Department of Agriculture.
- ^ "Common Arrow-grass (Triglochin maritima)". Archived from the original on 2007-02-04. Retrieved 2007-02-17.
- ^ Sterry, Paul (2006). Complete British Wild Flowers. HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. p. 188. ISBN 978-0-00-781484-8.
- ^ NRCS. "Triglochin maritima". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 15 December 2015.
- ^ Phillips, Roger (1994). Wild Flowers of Britain. Macmillan Reference Books. p. 52. ISBN 0-330-25183-X.
- ^ "Triglochin maritima in Flora of North America". www.efloras.org. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
- ^ "Sea Arrowgrass – Identification, Distribution, Edibility – Galloway Wild Foods".
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