Green Bulrush vs Bluejoint - TreeTime.ca

Green Bulrush vs Bluejoint

Scirpus pallidus

Calamagrostis canadensis

CUSTOM GROW

CUSTOM GROW

Green Bulrush
Bluejoint

Green Bulrush is a common waterside plant, suitable for erosion control and land reclamation. Despite this, Green Bulrush is very drought resistant once established. Bulrushes can cool nearby areas on hot days.

Unlike many of the other waterside plants available, Green Bulrush does not attract wildlife. This makes it a good choice for surrounding residential water sources.

Green Bulrush is topped with spiky balls of florets, green in the spring and fading to brown in the fall.

Bluejoint is a native perennial grass that forms tall, dense colonies. It is one of the most abundant grasses found in Canada and the United States. The extensive shallow root system and spreading rhizomes help stabilise soils, especially in wet meadows, marshes, and along streambanks.
It is a cool-season grass, growing most actively in spring and fall and slowing during the heat of summer. Seeds from its purple-tinged spikes feed birds and small mammals, and the plant itself provides forage for wildlife and livestock, though it does not tolerate heavy grazing. Its tall, dense growth also offers nesting habitat for wetland birds. With these combined values, Bluejoint is well-suited for naturalisation, riparian plantings, and habitat restoration projects.

Green Bulrush Quick Facts

Bluejoint Quick Facts

Zone: 1a
Zone: 2a
Height: 1.5 m (5 ft)
Height: 1.2 m (4 ft)
Spread: 0.9 m (3 ft)
Spread: 0.3 m (1.0 ft)
Light: full sun
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: wet
Moisture: normal, wet
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: fast
Life span: short
Life span: medium
Growth form: upright, clump-forming
Spreading: rhizomes - high, seeds - high
Suckering: medium


Foliage: long thin whitish green
Flowers: green spiked clusters
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON
Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, YT, NT, NU, PE
Other Names: cloaked bulrush, pale bulrush, pale-green bulrush
Other Names: bluejoint grass, bluejoint reedgrass, canada blue joint, canada reedgrass, marsh reedgrass