Juncus tenuis

Common Name
Path rush
Slender rush
Poverty rush
Plant Form
Grasses, Sedges & Rushes
Duration
Perennial
Max Height (ft)
3.0
Growth Rate
Slow
Region
Coastal
Piedmont
Mountain
Hardiness Zone
5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Commercially available
Yes

Photographer: sjaakkeuvelaar
Licensed under: CC BY-NC 4.0
Original photo: Original photo

Additional Info

Habitat: Poverty rush grows on freshwater sites that have saturated soil conditions during the winter and dry conditions during the summer. It is common in disturbed areas with seeps and springs, such as prairies, meadows, shaded roads, and ditches.

Wildlife: Some upland gamebirds and granivorous songbirds feed on the seeds of poverty rush. In addition, poverty rush is used as material for nest construction, and as cover for foraging animals.

Notes: Useful as a groundcover, or water plant in a rain garden due to its ability to grow in compacted and saturated soils. Poverty rush can be used in the bottom of constructed bioswales as a groudlayer. It is also used in the scrub shrub layer as a ground cover in constructed wetlands 

Bloom Time
Spring
Early Summer
Late Summer
Fall
Ground Cover
Yes
Light Requirements
Full sun
Partial sun
Moisture Requirements
Wet
Moist
Dry
Deer Resitant
Yes
Seed or Fruit eaten by wildlife?
Yes
Earth Sangha Inventory

Founded in 1997, the Earth Sangha is a nonprofit public charity based in the Washington, DC, region. The Wild Plant Nursery is the most comprehensive source of local-ecotype, native plants in the Washington DC region, and the region’s only facility dedicated exclusively to this type of propagation. “Local-ecotype” plants are propagated from local, wild, naturally-occurring populations and are well-adapted to local conditions and for wildlife species that depend on the local forms, such as pollinators. Inventory is updated on a weekly basis so number may not be accurate.

Pots Available Plugs Available Location Notes
0 0 Row 9 View My Wishlist