Germination temperature
Warm: the USDA guide keeps greenhouse trays at 32-38 °C (90-100 °F).
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Common or soft rush is a tough, clump-forming perennial for pond margins, bog gardens and rain gardens. Its tiny seed must be sown on the surface in light and kept wet and warm.
Warm: the USDA guide keeps greenhouse trays at 32-38 °C (90-100 °F).
Surface only; press the seed in and do not cover.
Seed begins to sprout in about 1 week.
Required for germination; seedlings grow best in full sun to part shade.
Optional soaking for 1-7 days to speed sprouting.
Raise in trays and plant out as plugs; plugs establish more reliably than seed sown in the field.
The seed is tiny and black, dust-like. Mix it with dry fine sand to sow evenly. Seed of this rush is very long-lived: the University of Washington data sheet gives a seed life of up to 60 years.
Not needed.
Not needed according to the USDA plant guide; warmth, light and constant moisture trigger germination.
Optional. Soaking the seed in water for 1 to 7 days shortens the time to sprouting. Sow the wet seed straight onto the tray surface.
Heat speeds germination: the USDA guide keeps the greenhouse at 32-38 °C (90-100 °F). In hot Indian summers outdoor trays usually stay warm enough; in cool climates use a heated propagator or sow in late spring.
Place seed on the surface and press it lightly into contact with the mix. Do not cover it; buried seed stays dormant.
A fine, moisture-holding seed mix. In the garden the rush prefers wet, slightly acidic soil of medium fertility.
Keep the surface constantly moist; seedlings cannot survive long without water. Stand the tray in a shallow saucer of water rather than watering from above, which washes seed away.
Germination needs light, so keep trays in a bright place; full sun suits seedlings once they are up.
First seedlings appear in about 1 week under warm, wet conditions.
Seedlings grow slowly: the USDA guide reports plugs ready in 100-120 days. Plant them 25-30 cm (10-12 in) apart into moist soil, where they fill in within one growing season. Plant at the start of a wet season so roots establish in saturated soil.
Keep newly planted plugs saturated. Let roots establish before the site is flooded; established clumps tolerate 2.5-8 cm (1-3 in) of standing water when levels rise and fall over the season.
Cause: seed covered with mix, or too cool. Fix: resow on the surface, keep it bright and warm, and do not let it dry out.
Cause: the tray dried out, even briefly. Fix: bottom-water and cover trays with clear film until seedlings are established.
Cause: plugs too small or planted into soil that dries. Fix: grow plugs on to a larger size before planting and keep the site wet.
Cause: aphids, which rarely do serious damage to this resilient rush. Fix: hose them off.
Cause: it spreads by seed and rhizomes and can form dense stands. Fix: grow it in a planting basket or contained bed, and cut seed heads in small gardens.
Pond edges, ditches, bog gardens and rain gardens in sun or part shade suit it best; in containers it needs regular watering.
Once you have a clump, divide it in spring for quick new plants.
The tall green stems are used fresh in arrangements and dried for weaving; cut them as needed through the season.
Mature clumps tolerate both drought spells and total flooding, so they need little care once established.
Sow common rush on the surface of a wet, warm tray for sturdy clumps around ponds and bog gardens.
No. The seed needs light, moisture and heat to germinate, so press it onto the surface and keep it wet.
Established plants tolerate 2.5-8 cm (1-3 in) of fluctuating standing water and even short total flooding. Let young plugs root into wet soil first.
Yes. Use a pot without drainage holes or stand it in a saucer of water so the mix never dries out.