Description

Toad Rush is a common native annual, a small, almost grass like plant about 2 to 10cm in height. The key features of rushes are their cylindrical leaves and their dark brown, hard and nut-like fruits (seeds). With toad rush this is not so easy to see as the leaves are very narrow, normally under 1mm across, and somewhat flattened. Its one of those plants that are easy to identify in the field but difficult to describe concisely. The very slender stem repeatedly forks with a floret at the junction of each fork and more florets along and at the tips of each branch. There may be only one stem but usually it repeatedly branches at its base to form a little tuft.

Habitat Information

Toad Rush is found where the water-table is at least seasonally high such as might be found by pond and lake margins, on the banks of streams, rivers, in marshes and in dune-slack. It does not cope well with competition so is usually found on bare or disturbed ground.

Toad rush’s ability to colonise open ground and grow an extensive root system has occasionally been used to prevent soil erosion. It is known to also be used as a nurse crop for habitat creation schemes in much the same way as we discuss the use of Westerwolds Ryegrass in our Amenity and Agricultural Cultivars section of this website.

Growing Information

Easily sown from seed sown at any time of the year. It will be lost if you allow grasses to grow to tall, particularly in spring and early summer.