Cattails

Outdoor Professsor's Tips

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Here's your outdoor tip on cattails.

The cattail is one of the most common plants in large marshes and on the edge of ponds. It is called the wetlands supermarket by many people.

White, dense, and furry cigar-shaped seed heads sit at the top of very long stalks. There are two common species in the United states—broad-leaved cattail and narrow-leaved cattail. Their flat-blade leaves reach heights from3 to 10 feet. Both can be propagated by rhizomes or seed dispersion. Hybrid and Southern cattail are also other varieties found in the United States.

Cattails like shallow, flooded conditions establishing themselves in 1 to1.5 foot of water. Pollinated flowers develop into fluffy seed heads that blow through the air. They spread through their root systems with thick white roots called rhizomes. Large amounts of food are stored in the root system and the dense foliage and debris from the old plants make it difficult for completing plant species to grow.

Cattails prefer shallow, flooded conditions and easily get established along a pond shoreline or in waters one to 1.5 feet or less in depth. When unimpeded however, the cattail beds will expand and can extend their hefty rhizomes well out into pond into much deeper waters. Cattails need to have “wet feet” during most of the growing season.

Many pond owners view cattails with uncertainty because they have a tendency to grow in thick, nearly impenetrable stands, blocking the view of open water and raising the concern that they will take over and cover a pond. When undisturbed cattails beds can expand out from the shore taking over deeper water areas. Cattails can become a problem in irrigated farm land and managed aquatic systems impeding water flow and increasing siltation.

The animals most associated with cattails are red-winged blackbirds that often build their nest in them. Ducks and geese nest in them and frogs and salamanders lay their eggs in the water with them. Cattails are food for muskrats and they use them to build houses. They also provide cover for deer, raccoons, turkeys and insects.

Every part of a cattail has a purpose during different parts of the year. In the spring cattail flower spikes can be torn off and eaten like corn on the cob. The shoot has an odorless, tender inner core that tastes sweet and mild. Shoots can be added to soup or stir fries. They are a source of protein, unsaturated fat, vitamins and have almost no calories.

Cattail leaves are young and tender in the late spring and can be eaten raw or cooked. They can be added to salads or sandwiches raw and cooked similar to spinach. Dried leaves can also be twisted into dolls and toys for children. The underground stems or rhizomes can be harvested from autumn to spring. They are starchy like potatoes, but the starch must be scraped off or sucked from the tough fibers. You can also dry them, pound them to release the starch and sift the starch into a sweet powder.

Pollen from the flowers can be collected and used as flour good to thicken gravy and soups. It is a good protein and energy source. With the pollen removed, you can dip the flower heads in wax and use the stem as a candle that will drive away insects.

The large numbers of tiny female cattail flowers form dense cigar-like spikes on the stem just below the male spikes. When ripe, the heads disintegrate into a cottony fluff, leaving the seeds to blow in the wind. The female part must remain connected to the rest of the plant until the seeds have matured and dispersed. But beware, the plant’s airborne seeds have been known to irritate the skin and can trigger asthma. Native American used down from cattails to line moccasins and for bedding, diapers and baby powder. People still use the down to stuff pillows and clothing, but there may be some irritation to the some people’s skin.

Microorganisms from cattails have been known to improve water and soil quality. Science is now experimenting with the cattail to remove the poisonous elements of arsenic from drinking water and might provide an inexpensive form of filtration for developing countries.

When you next travel by a shoreline of cattails, remember the many possible uses for this prolific plant.

This is the OUTDOOR PROFESSOR from DiscoveringTheOutdoors.com/

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References-Additional Reading

Cattaills
http://www.cattails.info/

Cattails (Typha species)
http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com/Plants.Folder/Cattails.html

Common Cattails
http://www.fcps.edu/islandcreekes/ecology/common_cattail.htm

Nature Quotient.
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Outdoor Professor’s Tips: Exploring the Wonders of Nature
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