Typha latifolia

A survey was conducted among people in the aquatic plant trade in New Zealand (Champion and Clayton, 2001), and in the process provided information on identification so that T. latifolia could be distinguished from the native Typha species, T. orientalis (Champion et al., 2007). In particular,characteristics used to distinguish T. latifolia were: leaf sheaths tapering to lamina, female flower lacking scales, female spike dark brown, male and female spikes of similar lengths, and the grouping of pollen grains in tetrads. The identification utilized literature resources such as Fassett and Calhoun (1952), Aston (1973), Tutin et al. (1980), and Smith (1967a,b). The two species as well as T. laxmannii, another potential invader of New Zealand, are illustrated in Champion et al. (2007).