Typhus sp.

Scientific Name: Typhus sp. Note: we are combining a large number of species of boxwoods and looking at the genus as a whole here.

Common Name: cattail

Native Range: North America, Europe, northern and central Asia, northern Africa

Zone: 2 to 11

Plant type & Form: herbaceous perennial

Height: 3.00 to 7.00 feet

Spread: 3.00 to 5.00 feet

Bloom Time: May to July

Bloom Description: Yellow (male) green (female) – sausage brown flower spike

Flower: poker-like, sausage-brown flower spike (5/8 to 1 1/4” diameter) which purportedly resembles a cattail

Fruit: Small seeds. Feather-like plumes of tiny brown hairs attached to each seed aid in dispersal.

Leaf: narrow, blade-like green leaves

Sun: Full sun to part shade

Water: Wet

Soil type & pH: rich loam

Maintenance: Medium

Suggested Use: Water gardens. Bog gardens. Ponds. Naturalize in wetland areas. Flower spikes are very popular additions to dried flower arrangements.

Tolerates: Wet Soil

Identification notes: Two cattail species are native to the U.S. Midwest, namely Typha angustifolia (narrowleaf cattail) and Typha latifolia (common cattail). Typha angustifolia is very similar to Typha latifolia, but is of narrower stature. Ranges for these two plants overlap and they sometimes hybridize (Typha x glauca has characteristics of both parents) making it sometimes very difficult to identify a specimen plant in the wild