Cattails

iTypha spp.)

-- Weed P r o b l e m or Potential Crop? JULIA F. MORTON ~

The prospects of converting a portion of the world's wealth of aquatic weeds into digestible protein or other useful material are currently of broad interest. The semi-aquatic cattails, which are overly aggressive and subject to vigorous control measures in many parts of the world, deserve study with a view to industrial utilization as an alternative to destruction. Being of nearly universal occurrence, cattails have had exceedingly widespread and diverse use by man and are employed to some extent commercially even today. Their stems and leaves might well be more extensively fashioned into floor coverings and other woven products, and the leaves, suitably processed, might relieve the growing shortage of papermaking substances. The family Typhaceae consists of a single genus, Typha (from the Greek Tvr meaning marsh) (2), with an undetermined number of species. Willis hazards "10-20 temp. & trop." (150). Ewart says " a b o u t 12 existing and 2 fossil species" (39). Physical differences are minor. All inhabit the slowmoving shallow water and low banks of freshwater ponds, lakes, rivers, canals, ditches, swamps and borders of dams. Some will tolerate a moderate degree of salinity (88). GENERAL DESCRIPTION

Cattails, also called reed mace, cattail-flag, flag tule (22), water torch, candlewick (152), or bulrush (which is apt to cause confusion with Scirpus species), and widely known in Spanish as espadaSa, tifa, tule or enea, are aquatic or paludal {palustrial), erect herbs with perennial creeping, stoloniferous rootstocks which form an irregular network 8-10 cm. below the surface of the soil (24). The erect, nearly flat, grasslike leaves, tapering at the apex, soft or leathery externally and spongy within (98, 143), range up to 3.5 m. long and vary from 3 to 23 mm. in width; are sessile, alternate, and sheathed at the base. The cylindrical or oval flowering stem is stiff, unjointed, shorter or taller than the leaves, and bears a terminal set of 2 (or sometimes 3) (9} brown spikes usually subtended by deciduous spathelike bracts. The male flowers in the fluffy upper spike are shed after pollination, the rachis eventually withering and falling off; the female in the lower spike (which is contiguous or separated by a 4 mm. or greater gap) developing into the conspicuous and ornamental, velvety, firm, cylindrical fruiting b o d y or "head". When this ripens, it bursts, releasing the minute nutlets (estimated at over 200,000 in number), each bearing at the base a tuft of fine, fluffy, whitish hairs and readily borne by the lightest breeze. In some nutlets, the integument is fused with the pericarp; others will split open in water and release the seed (39). I Director, Morton Collectanea, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida. Presented at the 15th Annual Meeting of the Society for Economic Botany, July 8, 1974, held at Michigan State University, East Lansing. Submitted for publication August 27, 1974.

ECONOMIC BOTANY 29: 7-29. January-March, 1975.

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Fig. 1. Narrow-leaved cattail (T. ang,~stifolia L.) with 10 leaves, strongly c o n v e x b e n e a t h (see cross-section). I n t e r r u p t e d female spikes are c o m m o n l y f o u n d in this species. Ruler is 1 5 cm.

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PRINCIPAL SPECIES AND THEIR GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION

T. latifolia L. (T. spiralis Raf., T. gracilis Raf.). Common cattail; broad-leaved cattail; great cattail; great reed mace; cooper's reed: soft flag (59). Inhabits Arctic (25) to temperate regions of North America, from Newfoundland, Alaska and British Columbia (53) south to Mexico and Guatemala; also found in the British Isles, Europe and in Asia. from Syria and Palestine (108) to Japan (84). Grows primarily in freshwater situations and is the only species which grows in acid soils (59). In Colorado, it occurs at altitudes of 1,200 to 1,800 m. {118). The plant is 1.2-2.5 m. high. The leaves, numbering 12-16, are light green, flat, 5-30 mm. wide, taller than the spikes; leaf sheaths not auriculate (97). Pith at base of stem is white (111). The male spike, at first sheathed in a membraneous spathe (32), is 7-20 cm. long, 2.5 cm. thick, yellow-brown with black markings and lacks floral bractlets. The orange-yellow pollen grains (97) are mostly (111) in 4's (tetrads), 4-celled (59, 97,130). Generally, there is no space between the spikes (66), but sometimes as much as 8 cm. (59). Female spike is dark brown 10-15 cm., or even 30 cm., long {23), 1.5-3.5 cm. wide. The nutlets burst in water. T. latifolia var. elatior. Has narrower leaves and shorter spikes (23). T. angustifolia L. (syn. T. angustifolia var. calumetensis Peattie) (59). Narrow-leaved cattail; lesser reed mace (108); small reed mace; nail rod (59, 97). Temperate and subtropical (117); extends from Nova Scotia west to Ontario (41), down the east coast and around the Great Lakes, and throughout the southern United States including the Florida Keys; also in South Dakota, Idaho, Nebraska, Oregon and California; Bermuda, Bahamas; the British Isles (25); Europe, North Africa (Red Sea Hills of the Sudan) (7); Lebanon (108); but not in Australia nor New Zealand (15). This species often occurs in sites too saline for T. latifolia (88). The plant may be 1.5-2.5 m. high (7, 26). Leaves, 7-13 in number (97), are dark green, sometimes reddish (134), 3-15 mm. wide, concave above, strongly convex beneath (79, 111), and reach much higher than the spikes. Leaf sheaths are auriculate (97). Flowering stem is slender and hard (55). Spikes are longer and slenderer than those of T. latifolia (91). Male spike is yellow-brown without black markings, 13-25 cm. long, usually exceeding the female (7); the flowers have bractlets; the light yellow (59) pollen grains are single, single-celled (47). Space between spikes varies from 6 mm. to 8-12 cm. (23, 59). Female spike is dark brown or reddish brown, 8-30 cm. long, often interrupted; 8-17 mm. wide (47, 117,148). Where this species and the preceding grow together, cross breeding occurs and the hybrids may be referred to as T. glauca Godr. (T. angustifolia var. elongata Wiegand (40, 41); T. elongata Kronf. (39); T. angustifolia var. longispicata Peck). Called blue flag (59), this type of cattail is c o m m o n along the Atlantic Coast of North America (Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Florida ) (111) and around the Great Lakes (148) and San Francisco Bay (97). The plants grow in clumps in dense stands (86, 113). Individuals are 2-3.5 m. tall; generally have less than 10 leaves (130); there may be 8 to 12 (97). The leaves are glaucous (blue-green), fiat above, slightly convex beneath, not leathery as are those of T. dorningensis, and as tall as or somewhat taller than the spikes (130). They range from 6-15 mm. in width. Leaf sheaths are usually auriculate (97). Pith at the base of

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the stem is yellowish-buff. The pollen is golden-yellow and single (59, 97). There may be no space between the spikes or a gap of as much as 4 cm. (59). The female spike is reddish brown (130), 15-25 cm. long, 16-23 mm. thick (40, 41, 148). Backer and Bakhuizen van den Brink show T. angustifolia L. (T. domingensis var. javanica Geze) as the cattail of Java, Karimondjawa Island, Bawean and Madoera (9). Heyne treated this plant as T. domingensis Pers. var. javanica Geze (T. angustifolia L. var. javanica Graebn., T. javanica Schnitzl.) (57). It is said to be "Very variable!" The plant is 1.5-2.5 m. tall; leaves are 6-16 mm. wide, very convex beneath, having many lengthwise air compartments. The male spike is 15-30 cm. long, rarely contiguous with the female, the gap varying from .5-12 cm. in length. Female spike is 7-28 cm. long, dark-brown (9).

T. domingensis Pers. (T. angustifolia Aubl. NOT Linn.; T. angustifolia var. domingensis Pers. ex Griseb.; T. angustifolia var. virginica Tidestr.; T. truxillensis HBK.; T. bracteata Greene; T. brownii Kunth (15). Southern cattail; grand jonc, in Haiti (12); totora, in Peru (35) and Bolivia (104), where the same vernacular name is given to Scirpus californicus Britton (130). Oregon, California (97), Utah, Nevada (41), Arizona (70), Gulf States and inland to southern half of Kansas (41,139), southern Florida; Atlantic coast north to Maine; the Bahamas; West Indies (1, 94); Central and South America (130) to Argentina (85) and Patagonia (76), the Philippines, New Guinea, New Caledonia, Australia and Tasmania, but not New Zealand (15). More often found in brackish water than in fresh water (59, 97). Occurs in "open cultivated tracts along the coast" of Guyana (46). There are dense stands in coastal swamps of western Surinam (109). The plant resembles and is often recorded as T. angustifolia (14, 122, 125, 126, 130) but it is taller -- 2.5-4 m. high (109) -- and less leafy. According to Munz, there are 6-9 leaves (97). Fernald distinguishes this species as having 10 or more (41). The leaves are 3-20 mm. wide (109); flat above, moderately convex beneath, yellow-green (97) or pale green, leathery (130). The leaf sheaths are not auriculate (97). Spikes may be slightly lower than, equal to (97), or higher than the leaf-tips. Male spike is light brown, 0.7-2 din. long (130) or up to 4 dm. (41). The golden yellow pollen (97) is single, single-celled (130). Space between spikes varies from 0.7-4.5 cm. (59, 70). Female spike is pale- to cinnamon- brown (111), rough-surfaced, 10-25 cm. or 40 cm. long, 10-22 mm. wide (76, 109, 130). The seeds do not burst in water; outer coat is not separable (17). The plant does not burn readily (105). In the United States, Hotchkiss and Dozier have observed T. latifolia, T. angustifolia and T. glauca c o m m o n l y growing together from central Maryland northward, and T. latifolia, T. angustifolia and T. domingensis from southern Maryland southward (59). T. angustata Bory et Chaub. (T. australis Schum. & Thonn.; T. stenophylla Sinenis NOT Fisch. et Mey.). Common reed mace; bulrush. Hawaii (formerly misidentified as T. latifolia L.) (98); Greece, Crete and the Cyclades (142); Egypt (138), southern Sudan (7); West Tropical Africa (31); South Africa, often with T. capensis but less c o m m o n (2); Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Sinai (108); Iran (106); Iraq (6); Upper India (145), Japan (84). "Dense associations ofPhragmites communis and Typha angustata occupy many hundred square kilometers" in the Southern Marshes of Iraq (50).

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The plant is 1.5-2.7 m. high (7). Leaves are flat above, convex beneath; to 13 mm. wide, and extend above the spikes (108). Spikes are 12-25 mm. apart or, rarely, contiguous (7). The female spike is dark or pale brown with gray dots (108), routh-surfaced, to 16 cm. long and 3 cm. wide (2); the male may be considerably longer (84). The plant is very similar to T. angustifolia except that the bracts of the female flowers "are less broadly expanded at the tip" (63). T. capensis Rohrb. (T. capensis N.E. Br.; T. australia N.E. Br.; T. latifolia L. ssp. capensis (51). Throughout South Africa (51), Madagascar, the Philippines and New Guinea (19). The plant resembles T. latifolia (63). The leaves may be green or glaucous, are 10-15 mm. wide, as tall as the stems or taller (to 2 m.). Stems usually no more than 1.5 m. Spikes may be contiguous or separated. Bracts of male flowers are forked at the tip (63). The female spike is smooth-surfaced (2), 12-20 cm. long and 2.5 cm. in diameter, tapering at both ends. The male spike is shorter. T. orientalis Presl. (T. japonica Miq.; T. muelleri Rohrb.). Japan; southern China; the Philippines, New Guinea, Australia and New Zealand (15). Leaves narrow, reddish (134); 6 mm. wide; the upper 2-4 leaves usually having auriculate sheaths (15). Spikes may be contiguous (23) or may be 2-6 cm. apart. Female spike 15-30 cm. or even more in length; 1-3 cm. wide; reddish brown (15). T. elephantina Roxb. Elephant grass. Mediterranean region; India; East Indies. The leaves are narrow, slightly channeled above, convex beneath; spongy; wavy-margined above the middle, and taller than the spikes (33). The stems are round, smooth (36), 2-4 m. high (33). The spikes are separated (36). The male spikes 20-30 cm. long; female, 15-25 cm. long and plumper (33). Lesser known species include: T. laxmannii Lepech. (T. stenophylla Fisch et Mey.; T. gracilis Jord.). Scented flag (135). Southern Europe, Asia Minor to China. Plant is .8-1.3 m. high (23). The leaves are channeled above, convex beneath. Spikes are separated (145). T. minima Hoppe, unreliably reported in England (25), occurs in Europe and from the Caucasus to Eastern Asia. The plant is .3-.8 m. high; leaves of sterile stems 2 mm. wide, of flowering stem nearly reduced to "inflated sheathing bases". Female spike rusty brown, ovate or cylindrical, contiguous to male or separated (23). CATTAILS AND W I l l ) L I F E

Cattail stands provide protective cover for wildfowl, b u t their tiny, excessively hairy seeds are consumed by only a few kinds of birds, mainly the green- winged teal, blue, Canada, snow and tule geese, and the semipalmated sandpiper. The rootstocks are more important than the seeds as food for geese. As nesting places, cattail stands are favored by long-billed marsh wrens, redwings, yellow-headed blackbirds (87), and by both the purple and Florida gallinules (82). One of Marianne North's paintings at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, England, shows cattails in a South African swamp hung with the nests of a social finch (115). Cattails which infiltrate marshes important to ducks are considered undesirable weeds and may be wholly eliminated by herbicides, by repeated mowing (87), or by water-level manip-

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Fig. 2. M a g n i f i e d c r o s s - s e c t i o n o f Typha angustifolia leaf, s h o w i n g l o n g i t u d i n a l air c h a n n e l s ( l e a f 15 m m . w i d e ) . (Photo by l)r. H. F. Strohecker, Dept. of Biology, University of Miami.)

ulation (131), or herbicides may be applied by airplane only for the purpose of creating openings lA to 1 acre wide to attract migrating waterfowl and to encourage the growth of d u c k f o o d plants (131). Muskrats thrive in cattail stands along the Atlantic Coast of North America and in the Louisiana Delta (5). If there are no banks suitable for burrows, the animal "settles directly on the water in so-called 'huts' made of piles of stems of bulrush, reed, cattail and other aquatic plants" (157). Muskrats feed heavily on the rootstocks, leaves and stems (87). According to Hotchkiss and Dozier, they prefer T. glauca over T. latifolia, and generally ignore the hard-stemmed T. augustifolia (59). Along most of the Gulf Coast, nutrias are found in cattail areas more c o m m o n l y than muskrats (5). In Thailand, grass carp eat the young shoots (78). T. elephautina is grazed by elephants in India (36). The young shoots of T. angustata are grazed by water buffalo and other animals in the marshes of Iraq (49). CATTAIL C U L T I V A T I O N

Cattails are valued as ornamental plants on the borders of ponds or small pools on estates and in gardens (134). They are propagated by seed or division and planted on wet soil or in water 15 cm. deep (23). Egyptians plant T. angustata along the Nile to reduce soil salinity. When the mature cattails are removed, rice can be grown successfully (86). In Lesotho, newly-built dams "are provided with stands of Typha and other water plants, and Salix species (chiefly the weeping willow) are also planted along the dam

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wall and sides; as these dams silt u p . . . grasses take over" (51). A protective " h e d g e " of cattails near a dike will prevent dike damage by wave action and ice heaving (131). In India T. elephantina is planted to prevent erosion (33). It is valued for its long roots which bind loose soil and embankments (36). However, cattails must be kept under control lest they multiply excessively. A few plants may spread to cover an acre (40). A single seedling grown experimentally in a culture tank produced 98 non-flowering shoots to 1.2 m. tall and 104 crown buds in the first season (139).

CATTAILS AS WEEDS

Two decades ago, there were estimated to be 140,000 square miles of cattail swamps in the United States. In many parts of this country and the Old World, cattails invade rice fields (95) and other irrigated agricultural land and farm ponds, also multiple undesirably in recreational lakes, clog drainage canals, interfere with fishing and impede boat traffic on these and other waterways (139). In East Africa, cattails are classed as weeds "when they become established in dams, reservoirs, drainage ditches, etc., interfere with flow of water and encourage silting" (63). In some areas of the Florida Everglades, cattails are multiplying at the expense of other vegetation. There is a massive encroachment of cattails in the Florida Flood Control's Conservation Area No. 1 which is attributed to increased water depth unfavorable to sawgrass and to higher nutrient levels resulting from agricultural operations. Cattails are becoming a problem in drainage canals in flatwoods Citrus groves and occasionally infest canals paralleling highway (132). Timmons et al. declare that cattails are especially troublesome in 17 western states. In addition to their other disadvantages, they waste water by transpiration (139). In water-use studies, an acre of cattails was found to lose 2.3 m. of water per year, "when the water table was at the surface in central Califomia, and 3 m. in the Mesilla Valley in New Mexico" (43). In the Huleh swamp of Palestine, calculations were made of the amount of water lost by transpiration related to the fresh weight or water content of the transpiring organ. In T. angustata, 1 g. of fresh weight lost 1,208 mg. water per hour in March; 2,504 mg. in November (158). Where heavy equipment is available, cattails may be removed from ponds by dredging (93). Cutting off the shoots "below the water surface two or three times in one growing season during preheading or early heading stages reduced the stand of cattail 95-99%" in mowing trials in Montana and Utah (133). T. latifolia seedlings less than one year old die out if the water level is maintained at 45 cm. or more from early spring to midsummer. Mature plants of this species are killed by water depth of 63.5 cm., while narrowleaved cattail is unaffected by this degree of flooding {131). Establishment of T. angustifolia can be "prevented if depth of water is maintained at more than 1.2 m. and precautions taken against silting" (63). Increasing the salinity of water will discourage cattail growth and allow the development of more salt-tolerant plants (5). In freshwater situations, sweet flag (Acorus calamus L.) will crowd out a cattail c o m m u n i t y and take over as the dominant species (157). Brookgrass, Catabrosa aquatica Beauv. (Canada, R o c k y Mountains and Eurasia) competes successfully with T. latifolia (133). Vigorous chemical treatments are the principal means of cattail elimination. High doses of MCPA or 2,4-D in diesel oil (2.27-4.53 kg. per acre) are

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: CATTAILS

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Fig. 3. Male a n d female spikes of the narrow-leaved cattail F e m a l e spikes are r e d d i s h - b r o w n a n d vary greatly in length.

(T. angustifolia L.).

effective if applied at flowering time. Dalapon (9 kg. per acre) and ATA (amino-triazole) {4.53 kg. per acre) have been in more general use and are stated to be harmless to fish in the specified doses (139). In combination, lesser amounts of Dalapon (2.27 kg. per acre) and ATA .91-1.36 kg. active ingredient per acre) are just as effective and more economical {131). Erbon (18.14 kg. per acre) gave good results in Montana (139). Application for two or three years may be necessary (63, 139). Increasing opposition to the widespread use of herbicides may turn attention to the possibilities of cattail control through harvesting and utilization where the stands are sufficiently vast. ECONOMIC VALUE

Various populations have depended upon cattails to meet many of their needs. The great stands around Lago de Amatitlhn, Guatemala are of considerable local importance (130). To the coastal Indians of Peru (155) and to

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Fig. 4. Y o u n g cattail plants have b l a n c h e d , s u c c u l e n t bases which are " p e e l e d " and eaten raw or c o o k e d .

the tribes who inhabit the shores of Lake Titicaca (partly in Peru, partly in Bolivia), the tall bulrush, Scirpus californicus (130), and the cattail, T. domingensis (155), are as important "as bamboo is to the Chinese" (151). Every part of the cattail plant has multiple uses.

USES OF STEMS AND I,EAVES

Some Lake Titicaca dwellers live on floating islands -- huge rafts -constructed of layers of bulrush or of cattail stems (151). The Aztecs created stationary islands in swamps by cutting and arranging cattails to form a hugh " c a r p e t " over the mud (in one case 2,238.4 m. broad) and heaping soil upon it to build the foundation for their structures (8). In Peru, the stems have been used for making sandals (155). Natives along the Mitchell River in Queensland use cattail stems as spear handles (10). In

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Fig. 5. S u c c u l e n t , w h i t e r h i z o m e s of T. angustifolia. In the c e n t e r is s h o w n a p o r t i o n from w h i c h the o u t e r layer is partly r e m o v e d , e x p o s i n g the slender, firm, central " c o r e " . Ruler is 15 cm.

West Africa, the stems are interlaced to form large screens for partitioning the interiors of houses (31). In the Philippines, they are twisted into crude and rather weak ropes (19). Split stems are woven into coarse mats, sieves and ropes in India (145), and wickerwork and baskets in Java (57). Stems of T. angustata, T. elephantina and T. laxmannii are used for thatching huts and houseboats (145) and are employed for making temporary wicker boats for crossing rivers in flood (33). Durable, unsinkable cattail sailboats were formerly widely used by Indians in the Americas (55), including the Lake Titicaca people (155), though the latter today employ mainly the bulrush for this purpose (55, 130). Cattail stems, simply tied in bundles, serve as floats or buoys to support swimmers in India (36). The cuticle of cattail stems has been used for weaving hats and, blended with cotton, for making gloves (107). The leaf sheaths were used by the Chippewa Indians to make little dolls and toy ducks for their children (34). The sheaths of T. glauca, cut in the fall (59), have been much employed for caulking barrels (32) and, in Africa, those of T. angustata are similarly

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ECONOMIC BOTANY

Fig. 6. Seven years' growth of cattail being dredged from pond at King's Bay Yacht and Country Club, Miami, Fla. valued for caulking palm oil casks (29). Cattail leaves also serve to caulk canoes and log cabins (11). Cattail leaves are utilized as bedding for domestic animals in Bermuda (18). They are used to tie bundles (149) and are widely prized for weaving sleeping mats (3, 99, 104, 125), kneeling pads in canoes (52), baskets, slippers (19), sacks (125), and interior walls of houses in New Zealand (98). Perhaps the most elaborate wall hangings and prayer rugs are fashioned in Egypt (86). In Guatemala, cattail leaf fans are made for fanning charcoal fires (130). Similar fans have been found in excavations in Peru (155). Colombians say that to prepare veal a la Mexicana it is essential to wrap the meat in cattail matting (105). In central New York State, T. latifolia is the principal source of leaves for chair seats, great quantities have been harvested during the months of July and August (59) from the marshes bordering Lake Cayuga (148). American Indians relied on layers of woven leaves to winterproof their wigwams (152) and line the walls of their lodges (52, 141}. Cattail matting also served as burial shrouds (155).

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Fig. 7. The leathery-leaved southern cattail (T. domingensis Pets.). Spikes reach 4 dm. in l e n g t h ; o f t e n rise much higher than the leaf-tips.

In Puerto Rico, the dried and twisted leaves are formed into chair seats, rugs or floor mats and roofs for houses (143). The Bantu often use the leaves for thatching (146). Mexicans cover cattail thatch with a layer of adobe (30, 152). In Europe, the dried leaves have been used as stuffing in chairs and plaited to make winter coverings for plants (116). "String" derived from the peeled leaves is needed for sewing up sacks, joining mats and finishing the edges of baskets (52). In northern Venezuela, there is a small factory, "Viveros la Pica", beside a cattail marsh where the leaves are dried and made into table mats, round and rectangular baskets and rush squares for floor covering. The latter, 35.5 cm. • 35.5 cm., are made at the rate of 40 per day, utilizing 18 m. of plait per day. Nine squares are joined to make 1 sq. m. of carpeting. These products are very attractive and durable and sell at a good price. In Caracas, one can buy automobile back-and-seat pads woven of cattail leaves (93). In British Columbia, the Indians burn worn-out cattail matting, mix the charcoal with dried herring spawn and water and paint the mixture on the inside of canoes as weather-proofing (140). It has been repeatedly demonstrated that cattail stems and leaves are suitable for papermaking (3, 75). Perhaps the earliest extant samples of cattail paper are those contained in a rare, 6-volume work on the subject of pape'r by Jacob Christian Schiiffer of Bavaria, who experimented with many kinds of plant materials. The third volume, dated November 3, 1765, "has thirty-two text pages, and the specimens include papers made from asbestos, cattail and burdock stalks, thistles, and turf' (60). In 1853, cattail paper was being made in New York (107). Investigators at Syracuse University found cattail paper rather strong b u t difficult to bleach. Bleaching would not be

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essential in the production of wrapping paper, our supply of which is diminishing. French scientists in 1948 proposed methods for annual harvesting of the leaves (86). Harvesting costs have been compared unfavorably with those of w o o d pulp, but the anticipated scarcity of the latter may arouse renewed interest in cattail and efforts to solve the technical difficulties. There are British patents on chemical and mechanical means of extracting cattail fiber, and a German patent on mechanical process (86). Stems and leaves together can be chemically treated with sodium hydroxide to obtain fibers 2-4 m. in length closely resembling jute. The yield of fiber is 30-40% and production per acre of T. glauca (62,000-86,000 plants) is calculated at 3-4 tons (113). It has been suggested that cattails be cultivated as a fiber crop on wastelands t o o wet for other purposes (112, 113). Cattail leaves alone yield a soft fiber (35) which may be used as a substitute for cotton and linen in clothing, rugs and other products. A sample of the fiber was displayed at the Amsterdam Exposition in 1876. At that time, a French c o m p a n y was formed to manufacture textiles with this material (130). There was much enthusiasm for cattail leaf fiber in Germany and Rumania during World War I and in Russia in the early 1950's (86).

SUNDRY USES OF C A T T A I L tfEAI)S, I:LOSS AND POLI,EN

Underripe cattail heads, cut with a long stalk, are c o m m o n l y gathered for decorative purposes. Soaked in kerosene or other liquid fuel, they are often lighted and carried as torches (57, 152). To repel mosquitoes, campers sometimes collect cattail heads with only a short stem attached, sun-dry them, then ignite one at a time, holding it with the short stem in the m o u t h as though smoking it, so that the smoke will swirl close around the b o d y as a protective screen (74). American Indians used the soft floss or down from ripe cattail heads to pad cradleboards and to make warm quilts (152) and diapers for infants (68). It has been employed universally as stuffing for cushions (3, 57, 76, 109, 125, 129). A small pillow filled with cattail floss was discovered by archaeologists in a Peruvian excavation in 1932 (155). F. M. Bailey wrote: "In the early days of South Australia, the female spikes were collected [along the Murray River] and sold under the name of 'Murray Down' for stuffing pillows, etc." (10). The floss was utilized on a commercial scale in New Jersey before 1897 (35). It has been much used for mattress-filling. Darlington said: " P o o r people sometimes collect the fruit with its hairy involucels, from the mature spikes, for the purpose of filling beds; b u t it becomes exceedingly dusty and unpleasant, and is even unhealthy -- in every respect a miserable substitute for clean Oats chaff or cut straw" {32). Others have objected to the fact that the floss mats into hards lumps in pillows (130). It was formerly used to upholster seats of carriages, and has been employed as filling for baseballs (139) and sleeping bags (28), and as insulating and sound-proofing material. During World War II several million pounds were used in substitution for kapok in life jackets manufactured in Chicago (86). B o u y a n t mattresses filled with it were supplied years ago to the Italian Navy (83). Indian tribes in western Canada have spun the floss with dog hair to make blankets (140). In 1942, a German patent was obtained on a method of spinning the floss commercially (86). The floss has also been mixed with cement as a binding material (145). When ignited, it produces a

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flash of fire and has consequently served like spores of Lycopodium to simulate lightning in theatricals (116). Cattail pollen is collected by Apaches in the southwestern United States for use in religious ceremonies and for sale to the Navajos. In 1951, the price was reported to be $.25 for one teaspoonful; $1.00 for a tablespoonful (37).

MEDICINAL APPLICATIONS

In India, cattail flowers are valued in the treatment of burns (36), and the male inflorescence is applied to wounds and ulcers (83). The stamens with their pollen are applied when an astringent and styptic effect is desired (110). In China, the pollen alone (after sifting) (134) has been administered as an astringent and as a diuretic (106). It has served as an absorbent, in place of cotton, during surgery (98, 107) and after childbirth (134). The "refuse", mostly stamens, sifted out of the pollen, is parched and given as an astringent to halt dysentery and rectal hemorrhage (134). Cattail floss, too, has utility as a dressing for wounds and reputedly gave excellent results in a Paris hospital in cases of serious burns (85, 114). A decoction of cattail leaves (10% strength) stops uterine hemorrhages and relieves bloody diarrhea when taken at the rate of 3-4 cups daily (85). The rootstock is stated to be detersive, astringent (104), stimulant, aphrodisiacal, also useful as a febrifuge (20, 134), and as a diuretic in cases of retarded or painful urination (114). The decoction is taken as a remedy for dropsy and snakebite, dysentery, gonorrhea and the measles (83). It aids in expelling the placenta in humans and domestic animals, and some women take it during childbirth to promote uterine contractions (146). It has been employed to wash ulcers and tumors and the mouths of children with thrush (85). The rootstock has been boiled in milk and the latter given to relieve diarrhea and dysentery. Mashed to a jelly-like paste, the rootstock has been taken internally for gonorrhea and chronic dysentery (64) and applied externally on burns, erysipelas, eye and other inflammations. Combined with elm and aromatics, it has served as a poultice on ulcers, tumors and various sores (71). In India, T. angustata is listed among the Santal tribal remedies for insanity and epilepsy (65).

HUMAN FOOD USES

Wherever cattails grow, they have served as a source of food. Young plants are pulled up, the outer portion peeled off, the tender, blanched heart (which may be 45 cm. long) eaten raw (73) or boiled, seasoned with salt and served like asparagus. This portion of the cattail has often been called "Cossack asparagus" because of its great popularity with the Cossacks of the Don Valley in Russia (83, 86). In Africa, cattail plants are sometimes burned to obtain salt from the ashes (31). The y o u n g rootstock sprouts have been widely consumed as famine food (31) or as staple fare. With the outer part removed, the slender core -10-12.5 mm. thick (24) -- can be eaten raw even though it is undesirably fibrous (54). Irvine says the people of the Brisbane tribe, Australia, spit the fibers out (62). There is a small area of starchy material where the next shoot will emerge from the rootstock and this tidbit is favored by many people (46, 54).

20

ECONOMIC BOTANY

Fig. 8. Dried leaves of T y p h a d o m i n g e n s i s r e a d y for weaving, a n d a h a n d f u l of w o v e n table mats, at " V i v e r o s la P i c a " in n o r t h e r n Venezuela.

The rootstocks are best gathered in autumn and winter (27), washed, the outer layer of spongy tissue stripped off (24) and the firm central part (137) thoroughly cooked by roasting or boiling (100). They have a peculiar pungency which becomes more noticeable as one chews (152). Maiden quotes Gerard Krefft (Proc. Philos. Soc. New South Wales, 1862-5) who related that rootstocks 30-45 cm. long were collected in large bundles by the Lower Murray aboriginals in January and February, roasted in hollows in the ground, eaten hot or carried on hunting expeditions . . . " t h e y are at best a miserable apology for flour, and I almost believe it was on account of the tough fibre thus obtained that these roots were made an article of f o o d " (83). Nevertheless, the rootstocks have been reported as the chief food of the dwellers around the marsh regions of New South Wales. The North American Indians ate them (156), as did impoverished settlers in Virginia (42). In China (134) and in Europe they have often been pickled in vinegar and served in salads (104). Fresh, bruised "cores" can be boiled down to a sirupy "gluten" which is c o o k e d with cornmeal to make mush or pudding (24). Flour can be obtained from the fresh rootstock " c o r e s " by crushing them in water until the fibers are entirely free and the starchy material has settled to the b o t t o m . Vigorous stirring or boiling will help to separate the starch (67). Sun-dried rootstock "cores" may be ground and placed in water for the " f l o u r " to settle and the floating fibers and water are then poured off. If water is n o t available, the fibers are merely sifted out of the dry flour, preferably through a wire mesh (24). In an investigation at Yale University during World War I, mice were fed a diet consisting of 30% cattail flour for one week, and then it was tried by students (42). During the same era,

MOR TON: CA T T A I L S

21

Fig. 9. S t u r d y baskets m a d e of leaves of T. do,lingetTsis in the small factory, " V i v e r o s la Pica", in n o r t h e r n Venezuela. Squares for carpeting are similar to the sides o f the rectangular baskets but l a r g e r - - 35.5 cm. X35.5 cm.

22

ECONOMIC BOTANY

rootstock harvesting and flour-making experiments were being conducted at Cornell University. It was calculated that one acre of cattails would yield 2,943 kg. of cores -- 2,500 kg. of flour. Acceptable biscuits were made with 33 to 100% cattail flour and the flour was also used as a substitute for cornstarch in puddings (24). More elaborate experimental work was done at the Cattail Research Center of Syracuse University, beginning in 1947 (80). The yield of fresh rootstocks per acre varied from 13,636 kg. (T. latifolia ) to 131,818 kg. (T. glauca) -- reduced 70-80% by drying. The dried rootstock were chopped and pulverized in a hammermill, repeatedly screened and then ground again, and yielding 50-60% of flour with a starch content of 40-60%. It was declared to have as much protein as maize or rice and more carbohydrate than the potato. Cookies made from the flour were considered highly acceptable, and it was found that the flour could also be fermented to produce ethyl alcohol (113). The rootstocks are a c o m m o n source of alcohol in Russia (105). At Syracuse it was thought that the residual fiber (20% of the dried rootstocks) might be a usable by-product (80). In South America, cattail and bulrush rootstocks are valued as food for man, his horses and pigs. In the second half of the 16th Century, there were large herds of swine near the lagoon of Paris (now Lake Poop5) which were maintained on the rhizomes (103). The male and female flower spikes (45), with any sheaths removed (46), have been widely eaten (31, 136), raw or boiled or made into soup (101), the flowers being nibbled or scraped off, leaving the wiry core (42, 54). Harrington recommends stripping the flowers from the spikes before the pollen is ripe and mixing them with wheat flour for making muffins, pancakes and other products. He says that the flowers can be gently dried in an oven and held for future use (54). The yellow pollen has been an important food in New Zealand and in Sind Province (123) along the Indus River in northern India (145) as well as among the American Indians (156). When it is ready to shed, it can be shaken from the spikes into a paper bag or other container and agitated to bring the chaff and insects to the top for removal (45, 100). Pollen (from two dozen heads) can be made into soup or gruel (37) or a kind of bread (98, 123, 124), or mixed with an equal amount of wheat flour to make pancakes, muffins, or other baked goods (45, 54). Oswald prefers to boil one tablespoonful of pollen in 11/~ cups of water to make one cup of porridge (100). In southern Iraq (49) and China, the pollen is mixed with honey and sold as a sweetmeat (134). The seeds were valued by the American Indians as cereal (21). To obtain them, the ripe cattail heads were shucked from their stems and the woolly material spread 12.5 mm. thick over a square meter of hard ground or fiat stone. After igniting with a torch, the floss would be agitated with a switch until entirely consumed by the flames. The parched seeds were then swept up and enjoyed for their nutlike flavor (21).

SEED OIL

At the United States Department of Agriculture's Northern Regional Research Laboratory, it was found that 226,798.5 metric tons of cattail spikes would yield 90,719.4 metric tons of seeds, which, in turn, yielded 15,302.8 metric tons (113) of a drying oil having a high lineoleic content and a high acid number (11). The resulting meal, amounting to 75,174.1 metric tons, was considered suitable for cattle and chicken feed (113).

VIORTON: CATTAILS

23

Fig. 10. of

A t t r a c t i v e and s t r o n g seats and backs of chairs are c o n s t r u c t e d of leaves " V i v e r o s la Pica", in n o r t h e r n Venezuela.

Typha domingensis at

CtlEMI('AL ANALYSES

Cattail rootstocks contain, in winter, 12.5 parts starch to 73 parts water; in spring, only 10.5 parts starch to the same quantity of water (83). Analyses of defibered cattail rootstock flour have shown: moisture, 7.35-8.78%; ash, 2 . 4 8 - 2 . 8 4 % ; f a t , 0 . 6 5 - 4 . 9 1 % ; protein, 7.22-7.75%; carbohydrates, 79.09-81.41% (24). The pollen contains stearin and olein, 3.6%; sugar, 18.3%; starch, 2.0%; pollenin, 25.0%; magnesium and potassium phosphates, with small amounts of other potassium salts, 2.5%; silica, 0.4% (83). Watt gives the carbohydrate content as 44.5%, albuminoid, 19.75%; cellulose, 17,80%; oil, 2.70%; and the balance as ash and water (145). Pollen of T. angustata contains the pigment isorhamnetin and palmitic acid (106, 147). Little crystals of phosphate of lime are found in the stems (107). There are photochemical differences in ecological races of T. latifolia from short- and long-growing season locales (90), and greater enzymatic activity in coastal than in inland cattail populations (89). TOXICITY

The rootstock of T. domingensis contains a fatty oil possessing "an unidentified toxic principle which has purgative and emetic properties" (147). Woodcock in 1925 published the following statement regarding To

24

ECONOMIC BOTANY

latifolia: " T h e s t e m a n d r h i z o m e a r e g r o u n d u p for food, w h i c h in s o m e instances has

r o v e d p o i s o n o u s t o p e o p l e " 1153).

T. augustifolia w a s suspected of c a u s i n g i l l n e s s in c a t t l e in t h e G l o u c e s t e r district, New South Wales. Symptoms included "constipation with some b l o o d a n d m u c u s in t h e f a e c e s , l o s s of c o n d i t i o n a n d r e d u c t i o n of m i l k s u p p l y in d a i r y cows. P i e c e s of f l o w e r i n g h e a d w e r e p r e s e n t in t h e f a e c e s . " " L e a v e s a n d flowering heads were tested at the Veterinary Research Station, Glenfield. A calf a t e 1 9 ~ lbs. in 5 d a y s , i n c l u d i n g 1 ~ lbs. of f l o w e r i n g h e a d s in one d a y , w i t h o u t ill e f f e c t . " {611. T. augustata p r o v e d n o n - t o x i c t o s h e e p in t r i a l s in K e n y a {146}. I n 1930, t h e f a t a l p o i s o n i n g of s e v e r a l h o r s e s in I n d i a n a w a s t e n t a t i v e l y l i n k e d t o T. latifolia. T h e a n i m a l s e x h i b i t e d s t i f f n e s s , i n a c t i v i t y , s w e a t i n g , a n d m u s c u l a r t r e m o r s (72). P a m m e l m e r e l y s t a t e s : " T h e c a t t a i l is r e p o r t e d a s p o i s o n o u s " a n d c i t e s a s his s o u r c e G r e s h o f f ' s The Distribution of Prussic Acid in the Vegetable Kingdom, 1906, a n d Phytochemical Investigations at Kew, 1909 {102). In Florida, cattails pollinate from mid-December to mid-May. Mrs. Lillian B e a m a n F l y , f o r m e r l y a m e m b e r of t h e B o t a n y f a c u l t y , U n i v e r s i t y of M i a m i , f o u n d t h a t c a t t a i l p o l l e n h a d a v e r y low level of a n t i g e n i c i t y w h e n c o m p a r e d t o r a g w e e d 144 }. C a t t a i l f l o s s is i r r i t a t i n g t o t h e e y e s a n d t h e A m e r i c a n I n d i a n s a r e s a i d t o h a v e b l o w n it i n t o t h e e y e s of t h e i r e n e m i e s in b a t t l e in o r d e r t o t e m p o r a r i l y b l i n d t h e m (152). LITERATURE (:ITE1) 1. Adams, C. D. 1972. Flowering Plants of Jamaica. University of the West Indies. Mona, Jamaica. 2. Adamson, R. S. and T. M. Salter. 1950. Flora of the Cape Peninsula. Juta & Co., Ltd., Cape Town, South Africa. 3. Aguilar Gir6n, J. I. 1966. Relaci6n de Unos Aspectos de la Flora Util de Guatemala. 2nd ed. Tipographia Nacional, Guatemala. 4. Alcedo, A. de. 1967. Diccionario geogr~fico de las Indias Occidentales o Am6rica. Edici6n y estudio preliminar pot Ciriaco P6rez Bustamante. Grfificas Yagues, Madrid. Vol. IV, p. 105. (1st ed. 1796-89, 5 vols.). 5. Allan, P. F. and W. L. Anderson. 1955. More Wildlife from our Marshes and Wetlands. U. S. Dept. Agr. Yearbook - 1955. Pp. 589-596. 6. AI-Rawi, A. 1968. Wild Plants of Iraq with their Distribution. Teeh. Bull. 14. Min. of Agr., Directorate General of Agr. Res. & Proj., Baghdad. 7. Andrews, F. W. 1956. The Flowering Plants of the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. Vol. 3. Pub'd for the Sudan Gov't, by T. Bunele & Co., Ltd., Abroath, Scotland. 8. Armillas, P. 1971. Gardens on Swamps. Science 174(4010): 653-661. 9. Backer, C. A. and R. C. Bakhuizen van den Brink, Jr. 1968. Flora of Java. Vol. 3. Wolters-Noordhoff N. V., Groningen, The Netherlands.

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Stahel, G. 1942. De Nuttige Planten van Suriname. Bull. 57. Dept. Landbouwproefstation in Suriname, Paramaribo. 126. Standley, P. C. 1933. The Flora of Barro Colorado Island, Panama. Contrib. from Am. Arb. of Harvard Univ., Jamaica Plain, Mass. 127. Standley, P. C. 1937. Flora of Costa Rica, Pt. I. Pub. 391. Bot. Ser. Vol. XVIII. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chicago. 128. Standley, P. C. 1931. Flora of the Lancetilla Valley, Honduras. Pub. 283. Bot. Series Vol. X. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chicago. 129. Standley, P. C. and S. J. Record. 1936. The Forests and Flora of British Honduras. Pub. 350. Bot. Ser. Vol. XII, Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chicago. 130. Standley, P. C. and J. A. Steyermark. 1958. Flora of Guatemala. Fieldiana: Botany. Vol. 24, Pt. 1, Chicago Nat. Hist. Mus. 131. Steenis, J. H., L. P. Smith and H. P. Cofer. 1958. Studies on Cattail Management in the Northeast. Trans. 1st Wildlife Conf., Montreal, Can. Pp. 149-155. 132. Steward, K. K., Research Plant Physiologist, Aquatic Plant Invest., U. S. D. A. ARS, Southern Region, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. May 21, 1974. Personal Communication. 133. Stodola, J. 1967. Encylopedia of Water Plants. T. H. F. Publications, Inc., Jersey City, N. J. 134. Stuart, G. A. 1911. ChineseMateriaMedica: Vegetable Kingdom. Amer. Presbyterian Mission Press, Shanghai. 135. Sturtevant, E. L. (Edited by U. P. Hedrick). 1919. Sturtevant's Notes on Edible Plants. New York State Agr. Exp. Sta., Geneva, N. Y. 136. Sweet, M. 1962. Common Edible and Useful Plants of the West. Naturegraph Co., Healdsburg, Calif. 137. Szczawinski, A. F. and G. A. Hardy. 1962. Guide to Common Edible Plants of British Columbia. Handbook No. 20. Brit. Col. Prov. Mus. Dept. of Recreation and Conserv., Victoria, B. C. 138. Tackholm, V. 1956. Students' Flora of Egypt. Anglo-Egyptian Bookshop, Cairo. 139. Timmons, F. L. et al. 1963. Studies on the Control of Common Cattail in Drainage Channels and Ditches. Tech. Bull. 1286. U. S. Dept. Agr., ARS, Washington, D. C. 140. Turner, N. C. andM. A. M. Bell. 1971. The Ethnobotany of the Coast Salish Indians of V a n c o u v e r Island. Econ. Bot. 25(1): 63-104. 141. Turner, N. C. and M. A. M. Bell. 1973. The Ethnobotany of the Southern Kwakiutl Indians of British Columbia. Econ. Bot. 27(3): 257-310. 142. Turrill, W. B. 1929. The Plant-life of the Balkan Peninsula. Oxford at the Clarendon Press.

ECONOMIC BOTANY

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Book Reviews (continued f r o m pa~e 6j

maple syrup, and honey; and the synthetic sweeteners such as saccharin and aspartame. Research and e x p e r i m e n t a t i o n in the field of unusual natural sweetening agents are reviewed and chemical structures presented. Here is a concise record of what has been done with the taste-modifying "miracle fruit" (Synsepalum dulcificum) being exploited by the Miralin Corporation of Hudson, Massachusetts; the supersweet serendipity berry (Dioscoreophyllum cumminsii); and the other "miracle fruit," or katemfe ( Thaumatococcus daniellii). The final chapters are devoted to glycyphyllin (from Smilaxglycyphylla) and other dihydrochalcones; glycyrrhizin derived from licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra); stevioside (from Stevia rebaudiana); osladin (from Polypodium vulgare); and gymnemic acids (from Gymnema syl-

vestre). Each chapter has its own bibliography, and a general index appears on pages 235-240. The book's sturdy cloth binding is standard for the blue-garbed AVI food series. The relatively high price reflects recent increases in costs of paper and production. J.F.M.

MORTON:

CA T T A I L S

Biology of Halophytes. Yoav Waisel. 395 pp. illus. A c a d e m i c Press, New York, 1972. $19.50 A r e v i e w of this subject, long overdue, s h o u l d be w e l c o m e d by s c i e n t i s t s c o n c e r n e d with ecology and p r e s e r v a t i o n of o u r d w i n d ling coastal m a r s h e s . T h i s w o r k is an excellent r e v i e w of ecology and physiology of halophytes. Of p a r t i c u l a r i n t e r e s t is the way the a u t h o r d i s c u s s e s the s t r e s s e s to w h i c h h a l o p h y t e s are s u b j e c t e d and h o w these plants cope with these c o n d i t i o n s . T h e d i s c u s s i o n of the u p t a k e of e s s e n t i a l m i n e r a l s in the presence of high s o d i u m c h l o r i d e c o n c e n t r a t i o n in the m e d i u m is excellent. Dr. Waisel has d o n e an e x c e l l e n t ,job not only in b r i n g i n g us up to the p r e s e n t state of knowledge, but he also i n d i c a t e s the areas w h e r e r e s e a r c h is d e s p e r ately needed. T h i s book should be very stimulating to ecologists as well as to plant physiologists. ROLANI)O T. PARRONDO

Louisiana State University Baton Rouge, Louisiana Book Reviews (continued on next pagel

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