Cattails (Typha genus) are hardy plants, colonizing disturbed and muddy areas of the pond garden. They will grow in cooler climates, making them ideal for outdoor pond and water gardens in most of North America. For those with small gardens, cattails are suitable for the container water garden as well, though they will not become as large as they can when in an open pond or marsh.
Cattails are a Beautiful Water and Marsh Plant
Cattails are a visually striking addition to the water garden. Their long, thin leaves catch the wind and make a beautiful backdrop for smaller pond plants. The most impressive part of the cattail is the flower. The female fruiting spike is fuzzy and brown and can be up to 40 centimeters long. The name “cattail” likely comes from the long, brown and furry-looking spike of the plant, which looks like a cat’s tail. In the United Kingdom, these plants are commonly known as bulrushes or reedmace. As with many common names, the name bulrush can often cause confusion, since members of the Bolboschoenus, Cyperus, Scirpus, and Schoenoplectus genera of sedges also bear the common name bulrush.
Growing Cattails in the Pond Garden
Cattails are fairly simple to grow. They can reproduce from their rhizomes, which means that they often create dense marshes thick with cattails. Cattail plants can also reproduce from seed. The plant will grow anywhere the soil is quite wet. While they enjoy growing in areas with a lot of organic matter, the plants themselves produce so much detritus that after the first year, there is rarely a need for the pond or water gardener to coddle the cattails with extra organics.
Cattails Thrive in Difficult Environments
This is a hardy and abundant plant. Since it reproduces underground and pops up from rhizomes, one cattail can spawn many, many more in a small area. The rhizomes are not harmed by fire, so it is ideally suited to the native grassland environments where it thrives as one of the first species to emerge after a disturbance.
The Cattail is a Food for All Seasons
Cattails are an incredibly versatile plant in the kitchen. Nearly all parts of the plant are edible. The roots can be harvested throughout the late fall and into the spring. The bottoms of the new leaves can be eaten raw or cooked, and the developing flower spike is eaten like corn on the cob.
Cattail is a Useful Household Plant in Many Cultures
Cattails are nearly ubiquitous as a water plant in countries around the world. The strong leaves have been used in homes for making baskets, rope, and paper. The leaves can also be used as bedding. Oddly enough, the pollen of the bulrush can be used both as a thickener for soup and as an ingredient in fireworks.
Use Cattails to Attract Wildlife to the Pond Garden
In the larger pond or marsh garden, cattails can provide a place for animals to hide and nest. While the dense thickets of cattails are not always a favorite home for ducks, blackbirds and wrens find them to be a suitable home.
Types of Cattails
The easiest cattail to find and grow is Typha latifolia, also known as the Common Cattail. Those with smaller spaces might enjoy the miniature cattail, Typha minima. The narrowleaf cattail (Typha augustifolia) is also slightly shorter than the Common Cattail.
A waving mass of rushes is a calming and beautiful sight in a pond garden. Cattails are gorgeous, but they are also an incredibly useful and versatile plant. Whether grown for food, crafts, or foliage, the cattail is a common wild plant that finds a place of honor in the cultivated water garden.
Tricia Edgar - Tricia Edgar is a gardener, environmental educator, and science writer from the Pacific Northwest.
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