Arundo micrantha Lam
Eng.: Reed, wild canne. Spa.: Caña. Fre.: Roseau, canne.
Perennial plant, vivaceous, hermaphrodite, up to 3(4) m in height. Growth cespitose, with small rhizomes growings around the original plant, from which lignified stems are borne. Central stems upright, and outer stems reclined, because they grow densely packed (in A. donax the stems are always upright because they grow more spaced apart along a linear rhizome), with hollow internodes. Stems 2-3(4) m in height and 1-2 cm in diameter; generally not branching. Leaves borne at the internodes; clasping, covering most of the stem, upright (not pendulous), at an angle of 30º with the stem, up to 60 cm long and up to 3(4) cm wide, linear-lanceolate, acute, fibrous, green, slightly white-blueish, glaucous, rough to touch. Flowers grouped in spikelets of (6)7-10 mm long, very numerous, with 1-2 flowers each, forming a large feathery panicle (up to 80 cm long), oblong, very characteristic, whitish-green or with purple tints. Flower with a lower glume covered in long silky hairs. Fruit elongated, with only 1 seed, typical of grasses, called caryopsis.
Flowering:
Late summer and autumn.
Fruiting:
No data for this region
Habitat:
On relatively deep and humid soils, but not necessarily close to rivers or edges of other wetlands. It can be found on forest clearings, grasslands, edges of cultivation, ditches. From semiarid to humid climate, on inframediterranean to mesomediterranean floors.
Distribution:
Mediterranean species. In North Adrica it is found in littoral and sublittoral Mediterranean areas of Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. Another species, A. plini Turra, has also been frequently cited here but, although this species does grow in North Africa, its citations are of biogeographical interest because they generally refer to A. micrantha.
Observations:
Another species, more common in North Africa, is the invasive A. donax (A. maxima
Forssk.) [Eng.: Giant reed, Spanish reed, wild canne. Spa.: Caña, cañavera. Fre.: Grand roseau, canne de Provence. Ara.: Buce ferici, qçob, ksab, gsab, ghaab, aghanim. Tam.: Irhounam, rhanim, arhalim, alemès, asendjel, lera]. It is larger in size and less glaucous in appearance, yellowish stems, up to 6 m in height and 2-4 cm in width. Leaves are larger, up to 80 cm long. Flowers are grouped into spikes of (9)11-14 mm, with 2-5 flowers each, forming an oval-oblong plumose panicle, 30-60 cm long. It seems to be a species native to the centre and S of Asia, which through cultivation or naturally has colonised the Mediterranean region since ancient times. In North Africa it extends through the Mediterranean area and numerous oases of the northern Sahara. It is currently considered one of the main invasive species in the world, with serious damage to the economy and ecosystems. In addition, it constitutes, in dry areas, such as the Mediterranean, an important vector for the expansion of forest fires.
Conservation status:
A. micrantha is a fairly uncommon species, while A. donax can become very abundant in certain areas. In the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, the former has not yet been evaluated whislt the latter is listed at a global level as Least Concern (LC) (Lansdown, 2013).