Eriophorum virginicum

Eriophorum virginicum, the tawny cottongrass, is a species of flowering plant in the sedge family Cyperaceae. It is native to eastern North America but was introduced in British Columbia in western Canada. It is most common in eastern Canada, New England, and the Great Lakes region. It is the only species of Eriophorum in North America that occurs in the southeastern United States, where it is uncommon. Despite its name, it is a sedge, not a grass, and it is sometimes called tawny cottonsedge to emphasize this fact.

Description
Eriophorum virginicum is a perennial herbaceous plant that spreads by means of underground rhizomes.

Taxonomy
Eriophorum virginicum was first described by the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1753. Evidently Linnaeus based his diagnosis on a specimen collected in Virginia, hence the specific epithet virginicum and the common name Virginia cottongrass.

Eriophorum virginicum was segregated to a new genus Eriophoropsis by the Austrian botanist and mycologist Eduard Palla in 1896. Later, in 1958, it was segregated to the existing genus Scirpus Tourn. ex L. by the Japanese botanist and collector Tetsuo Michael Koyama. , both Eriophoropsis virginica (L.) Palla and Scirpus virginicus (L.) T.Koyama are considered to be synonyms for Eriophorum virginicum L.

Eriophorum virginicum var. album was described by the American botanist Asa Gray in 1876. Variety album has white (not coppery) bristles. In 1924, the American botanist Karl McKay Wiegand reduced the variety to forma. Both names are considered to be synonyms for Eriophorum virginicum L.

Distribution and habitat
Eriophorum virginicum is native to eastern North America, from Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada to South Carolina in the United States (U.S.), ranging as far west as Minnesota. It was introduced in British Columbia in western Canada. In the U.S., it is most common in New England and the Great Lakes region. It is the only species of Eriophorum in North America that occurs in the southeastern U.S., where it is least common.

Eriophorum virginicum is an obligate wetland (OBL) species. In New England, it prefers bogs, acidic fens, and wet meadows.

Ecology
Eriophorum virginicum flowers in the early summer. After the flowers are pollinated, cotton-like fruiting heads develop during mid-summer and early autumn. In Minnesota, fruiting occurs from July to September.