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| NAS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species |
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Common Name: flowering rush
Synonyms and Other Names: Grassy rush; Water gladiolus
Taxonomy: available through 
Identification: B. umbellatus is a moderately tall, rush-like perennial. Its leaves are basal originating from a stout rhizome that is stiff and erect when immersed or lax and floating when in deep water. The inflorescence is a many-flowered umbel borne. The flowers are perfect, regular, 2-3 cm across, and pink. There are 3 sepals, which are petaloid. There are 3 petals, 9 stamens, with elongate anthers. It has 6 pistils that are simple, whorled, and united at the base. Its fruit is an indehiscent, many-seeded capsule (GISD, 2005).
Size: up to 1.5 m high
Native Range:
Africa, Asia, and Eurasia (USDA NRCS, 2008)
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Hawaii |
Caribbean |
Interactive maps: Continental US, Alaska, Hawaii, Caribbean
Nonindigenous Occurrences:
First observed in 1897 in North America. Widespread in the Northeast US. Locally abundant in Northern US. Recorded in: CT, ID, IL, IN, ME, MI, MN, MT, ND, NE, NY, OH, PA, SD, VT, WI (USDA NRCS, 2008) Canada: Alta., Man., N.S., Ont., P.E.I., Que.
Great Lakes Region: It was first collected near Laprairie on the St. Lawrence River in 1905; a specimen in the Britton Herbarium at the New York Botanical Garden was collected September 16, 1906, by Fr. Louis Arsene on the borders of the St. Lawrence River. West of Niagara Falls, the taxon was first collected near Detroit (Wayne County, Michigan, in Brownstown Township and at River Rouge) in 1930 by O. A. Farwell, although he noted on the specimen, "Has been here since before 1918!!!" (R. L. Stuckey 1968). Studies of Butomus in North America (L. C. Anderson et al. 1974) indicated that apparently the genus has become naturalized in North America at two separate locations, one near Detroit and another in the St. Lawrence River region. It is possible that plants naturalized in the St. Lawrence River region originated in eastern Asia, and those naturalized in the Detroit area originated in Europe or western Asia. Stuckey (1994) included dots for B. umbellatus from Indiana and British Columbia. Now widespread in Great Lakes region.
Ecology: Butomus umbellatus grows in lakes, riparian zones, water courses, wetlands, marshes and can tolerate water as deep or deeper than that in which cattail is normally found (up to 2 meters), extending to the deepest range of our emergent marsh species, except possibly for hard-stem bulrush and wild rice. Once established in a marsh, populations tend to increase and persist indefinitely. It is intolerant of salt or brackish water. Butomus umbellatus is in flower from July to September, and the seeds ripen from August to September (in North America). The scented flowers are hermaphroditic and are pollinated by bees, flies and Lepidopterans (Plants for a Future, UNDATED).
Means of Introduction: Butomus umbellatus was intentionally brought to North America from Europe as a garden plant for ornamental purposes. Ship ballast, muskrat activity and boating are also responsible for its introduction. Water and ice movements can easily carry it to new areas of a water body (Proulx 2000).
Status: Actively expanding (EPA 2008).
Impact of Introduction: Butomus umbellatus can displace native riparian vegetation, and can be an obstacle to boat traffic. Its very wide range of hardiness (zones 3-10) makes it capable of being widely invasive in the United States (IPANE 2001). Control of this species is very difficult, especially with herbicides because they easily wash away from the narrow leaves of this plant. Extensive physical methods of control must be employed to manage this invasive exotic. It can be spread over long distances by garden planting, and once established in a watershed it spreads locally by rhizomes and by fragmentation of the root system. Muskrats use parts of the plant and contribute to its local spread. Boaters can also transport flowering rush on their equipment.
Remarks: The name Butomus umbellatus f.orma vallisneriifolius (Sagorski) Glück has been used for plants that grow totally submersed or have floating leaves. Field transplant experiments with North American plants (R. L. Stuckey et al. 1990) have demonstrated that the non-flowering submersed form can be converted to a flowering mudflat form, and that flowering terrestrial plants can be transformed into non-flowering submersed ones. Consequently, B. umbellatus f. vallisneriifolius is a deep-water growth form and should have no taxonomic systematic status. A map of Butomus in North America, prepared by R. L. Stuckey (1994), showed that he accepted two species. His map essentially had everything east of Niagara Falls as B. junceus and everything west of the Falls as B. umbellatus. At this time, experts do not accept two species in the genus.
References
Delisle, F., C. Lavoie, M. Jean, & D. Lachance. 2003. Reconstructing the spread of invasive plants: taking into account biases associated with herbarium specimens. Journal of Biogeography 30:1033-1042.
Flora of North America. 2008. www.eFloras.org.
Global Invasive Species Database, 2005. Available from: http://www.issg.org/database/species/ecology.asp?si=19&fr=1&sts=sss [Accessed 1st September 2005].
Plants For A Future, 2004. Butomus umbellatus.
Proulx, N. 2000. Exotic Flowering Rush. Minnesota Sea Grant: Regents of the University of Minnesota.
USDA, NRCS. 2008. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 5 August 2008). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.
Other Resources:
USDA/NRCS Plants Database
GLIFWC-Maps
http://wisplants.uwsp.edu/scripts/detail.asp?SpCode=BUTUMB
http://dnr.wi.gov/invasives/classification/pdfs/LR_Butomus_umbellatus.pdf
https://kb.osu.edu/dspace/bitstream/1811/3136/1/V41N02_079.pdf
Author: Ling Cao
Contributing Agencies: 
NOAA - GLERL
Revision Date: 8/11/2008 Citation for this information:
Ling Cao. 2009. Butomus umbellatus. USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database, Gainesville, FL.
<http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.asp?speciesID=1100> Revision Date: 8/11/2008
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