Typha latifolia L.

Common cattail, bulrush, common bulrush, broadleaf cattail, great reedmace, Cooper’s reed, cumbungi, narrow-leaved cattails

Common cattail is a very familiar inhabitant of wet areas throughout the Americas, as well as in Europe, Asia, and Africa. It is a vigorous colonizer of disturbed areas with shallow water for much or all of the season. It forms dense colonies, spreading by cloning itself, and is common in roadside drainage ditches and ponds and swamps. In fact, cattails have thrived because humans are always reshaping the landscape. Over time, they are replaced by other species, still present but less dominant.

Plants: 3–9½′ (1–3 m) tall, with long, thick, flat, straplike pointed leaves like giant grass blades. These plants hybridize freely with narrower varieties, so there are many subtle variations. We distinguish here only between this and Typha angustifolia, narrow-leaved cattails.

Leaves: ⅛–1″ (6–29 mm) wide and up to 8′ (2.5 m) long.

Flowers: A single stout smooth stem, up to ½″ (1.3 cm) around, supports the flowerhead. A large sausage-shaped female flowerhead is the most noticeable characteristic. It is ⅝–1¾″ thick ⨉ 6–10″ tall (1.8–5 ⨉ 15–25 cm). Above it is a narrower spike of male flowers, sometimes separated from the male spike by up to 1½″ (3.8 cm). Flowers appear from June to July. As the plant ages, the male flowers wither, and the female spike turns dark brown, feeling like dense felt.

Fruits: If the flowers were fertilized, they produce small nutlike achenes or seeds. Gradually the seeds peel away from the stem, floating on windborne parachutes to begin again.

Habitats: Roadside drainage ditches and ponds and swamps.

Edibility: Cattail roots may be eaten after peeling and cooking them. Leaf bases and peeled stems are edible, cooked or raw. Young flower spikes are also edible.

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Typha latifolia description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.

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