The New Zealand Plant Conservation Network

Species

Schoenus apogon

Etymology

Schoenus: rush

Common Name(s)

none known

Current Conservation Status

2012 - Not Threatened

Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2012
The conservation status of all known New Zealand vascular plant taxa at the rank of species and below were reassessed in 2012 using the New Zealand Threat Classification System (NZTCS). This report includes a statistical summary and brief notes on changes since 2009 and replaces all previous NZTCS lists for vascular plants. Authors: Peter J. de Lange, Jeremy R. Rolfe, Paul D. Champion, Shannel P. Courtney, Peter B. Heenan, John W. Barkla, Ewen K. Cameron, David A. Norton and Rodney A. Hitchmough. File size: 792KB

Previous Conservation Status

2009 - Not Threatened
2004 - Not Threatened

Authority

Schoenus apogon Roem. et Schult.

Family

Cyperaceae

Flora Category

Vascular - Native

NVS Species Code

SCHAPO

Structural Class

Sedges

Synonyms

Chaetospora imberbis R.Br.; Schoenus imberbis (R.Br.) Poir; Schoenus laxiflorus Steud.; Schoenus brownii Hook.f.; Schoenus vacillans Kirk; Schoenus apogon var. laxiflorus (Steud.) C.B.Clarke

Distribution

Indigenous. North and northern South Islands, also Chatham Island. Also in Australia, New Guinea and Japan.

Habitat

Coastal to montane (up to 500 m a.s.l.). Preferring open, seasonally damp or poorly drained ground, usually within gumland, tea tree scrub or within pakihi or on the margins of low moor peat bogs. Sometimes an invasive weed of rough or poorly drained pasture. Rarely on ultramafics.

Features

Densely tufted, caespitose sedge. Culms numerous, 70-600 x 0.5-1.0 mm, densely packed at base, otherwise rather flaccid, unbranched, glabrous, occasionally finely scabrid just below inflorescence. Leaves 40-200(-600) mm long, usually less than, or rarely equal to the culm length; yellow green to green, linear to very narrow-linear, acute, channelled, margins slightly scabrid; sheaths membranous, reddish to red-purple. Panicle of 2-3 distant, or more or less approximate fascicles, the terminal usually with sessile to subsessile, densely clustered spikelets, lower fascicles, stalked, bearing loosely clustered spikelets; bract subtending each fascicle leaf-like, lowest bract overtopping whole inflorescence. Spikelets 4-6 mm long, 2-4-flowered. Glumes dark red, reddish purple to almost black, glossy, rarely pale cream near the slightly scabrid midrib, lower 1-3 glumes usually empty, often mucronate. Hypogynous bristles 6, > nut. Stamens 3. Style-branches 3. Nut slightly less than 1.0 x 0.5 mm, white with the 3 angles green or yellow, elliptic-oblong, almost globose, obtuse, apiculate, surface when viewed with a lens, conspicuously cellular, individual cells large.

Similar Taxa

Schoenus caespitans is very similar (and is regarded by some as a mere variety). From S. caespitans. S. apogon differs by its taller, more openly flaccid growth habit, culms up to 600 x 1 mm, leaves mostly less than, only rarely equal in length to the culms, 2-4-flowered spikelets that are 4-6 mm long (in S. caespitans the spikelets are 1(-2)-flowered and 3-5 mm long) and by the reddish glumes which are only rarely cream near the midrib, rather than distinctly, and centrally blotched cream. The surface of the nuts of S. apogon has conspicuous rather than distinctly smaller, minute cells.

Flowering

August - April

Fruiting

September - June

Propagation Technique

Easily grown from rooted pieces and fresh seed. An excellent pot plant. Quite tolerant of dry conditions as well as wet. Requires full sun.

Threats

Not Threatened

Chromosome No.

2n = 8

Endemic Taxon

No

Endemic Genus

No

Endemic Family

No

This page last updated on 14 Aug 2014