Aquatic Plants Page 11 - Keys to the Aquatic Biota of the Hawaiian Islands

	CPIE Project		Page P11

94a	(74)	Plant generally grass-like: herbaceous, with leaves linear, very many times longer than wide, leaf veins parallel; OR plant a green stem without obvious leaf-like structures, or these small and sessile (leaf lacking a petiole or leaf-stem), clasping the stem. Flower heads may be conspicuous, but individual flowers are small and usually mature to some shade of brown or yellow (usually green when immature) ~ Class LILIOPSIDAE (MONOCOTS, in part)	[95]
94b		Plant not grass-like: may be herbaceous or may be woody, but leaves at most only 5 or 6 times longer than broad; leaf veins arising from a central axis or radiating from a central point. Flowers variable, but many species with conspicuously colored or otherwise showy petals	[107]
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95a	(94)	Plant mostly a soft, green, vertical stem (called a culm), without leaves, or leaves present only as basal sheaths without blades, or blades inconspicuous. Flower head or heads (called spikelets) at or near tip of stem, in some cases, with a conspicuous bract subtending (found directly below) the flower head. Rushes ~ Family CYPERACEAE	[100]
95b		Stem, if soft, green, and upright, then clasped by one or more long, narrow leaves or with a basal rosette of narrow leaves; OR stem otherwise (creeping, branching).	[96]
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96a	(95)	Leaves in two ranks (distichous; looking down on the culm, leaves come off on two sides). Stems usually hollow except at nodes	[97]
96b		Leaves in three ranks (looking down on the culm, leaves come off on three sides), with closed leaf sheaths. { Stem usually solid, usually trigonous (three-sided). Sedges ~ Family CYPERACEAE	[105]
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97a	(96)	Flowers arranged in a dense, solitary spike (1.5 - 3 cm diameter) arising above flattened, spongy, pale green leaves, lacking a midrib. Cattail ~ Family TYPHACEAE	[98]
97b		Flowers arranged in various ways, usually in several to many spikelets. Leaves linear, pale to dark green, but not fleshy or spongy, often with a midrib that is prominent on upper or lower surface. Grasses ~ Family POACEAE	[130]
Key to Family Typhaceae
98a	(97)	Flowers with scales; male flower spike above and separated from female flower spike by an interval of 0.5 to 6 cm. Uncommon Typha domingensis Pers.
98b		Male flowers lack scales; female flowers with hairs; male flower spike contiguous above female flower spike, or sometimes separated by an interval of not more than 2.5 cm. Common cattail Typha latifolia L.


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