Details Top

Internal ID UUID643ff1daabde4184481282
Scientific name Bolboschoenus maritimus
Authority (L.) Palla
First published in Syn. Deut. Schweiz. Fl. , ed. 3: 2532 (1905)

Ethnobotanical Use Top

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General Uses Top

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Common products:
The dried culms of Bolboschoenus maritimus are harvested for traditional thatching of rural dwellings, especially in Mediterranean and Black Sea regions. Bundles of culms are split and used to weave mats, baskets, and small‑scale craft items. The material’s natural waxy surface provides water resistance, and the flexible yet rigid stems allow for the construction of durable shelter panels and decorative objects. In some local markets, the reed is sold as a raw material for artisans and small‑scale builders.

Industrial and craft applications:
Bolboschoenus maritimus has been evaluated as a non‑wood fiber source for pulp and paper. Chemical pulping of the culms yields a low‑ash, high‑brightness pulp (ISO brightness 80–85%) with a kappa number of 20–30, indicating a moderate lignin content favorable for chlorine‑free bleaching. The pulp can be used for printing, writing, and tissue grades, and the remaining fibers can be processed into biodegradable composite boards, insulation panels, and low‑density fiberboard. The bast fibers are also used for cordage and rope, where their natural tensile strength (≈300 MPa) and elasticity are valued. Preliminary studies have explored extraction of nanocellulose from the culms for biodegradable packaging and bio‑based composites.

Wood and fiber:
The culms consist of a central pith surrounded by a lignified sheath and an outer layer of bast fibers. The inner core is rich in cellulose, while the sheath provides structural rigidity. The bast fibers contain 45–55 % cellulose (dry weight), 20–25 % lignin, and 1–2 % ash, a composition comparable to many non‑wood fiber crops. After mechanical separation, these fibers are processed into yarn, rope, woven textiles, and reinforced composites, offering a renewable alternative to conventional bast fibers such as flax or hemp.

Properties relevant to use:
High cellulose content, moderate lignin levels, and low silica (

Synonyms Top

Scientific name Authority First published in
Reigera maritima Opiz Seznam : 83 (1852)
Schoenoplectus maritimus (L.) Lye Blyttia 29: 145 (1971)
Scirpus maritimus L. Sp. Pl. 1: 51. 1753 [1 May 1753]
Scirpus maritimus var. genuinus Godr. Fl. Lorraine 3: 91 (1844)

Common names Top

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Language Common/alternative name
English sea club-rush, cosmopolitan bulrush, alkali bulrush, saltmarsh bulrush
English bulrush
English makai sedge
English saltmarsh bulrush
English alkali bulrush
English sea club-rush
English cosmopolitan bulrush
Arabic ديس بحري
Belarusian Клубне-чарот марскі
Bulgarian морски болбосхьонус
Catalan jonca marítima
Catalan scirpe maritime
Czech kamyšník přímořský
Welsh ysbigfrwynen y morfa
Danish strandkogleaks
German gemeine strandsimse
German gewöhnliche strandsimse
German scirpe maritime
German scirpus maritimus
German strandbinse
German strandbinsen
Estonian meri-mugulkõrkjas
Finnish merikaisla
French schoenoplectus maritimus
French scirpus maritimus
French scirpe maritime
fy heanen
Irish bogshifín mara
Hawaiian makai
Hawaiian kaluhā
Hawaiian kaluha
Hebrew אגמון ימי
Upper Sorbian wšědna mórska syć
Hungarian sziki káka
Igbo cosmopolitan bulrush
Igbo sea club-rush, cosmopolitan
Korean 매자기
Lithuanian pajūrinis liūnmeldis
Lithuanian scirpe maritime
Latvian jūrmalas gumumeldrs
Norwegian Bokmål havsivaks
Dutch heen
Dutch zeebies
Dutch scirpus maritimus
Punjabi ਮੋਟੀ ਗੰਢੀ ਵਾਲਾ ਮੋਥਾ
Polish sitowiec nadmorski
Punjab موٹی گنڈھ والا موتھا
Romanian șovar
Romanian rogoz
Russian клубнекамыш приморский
Russian клубнекамыш морской
Swedish scirpe maritime
Swedish havssäv
Chinese 海濱三稜草
Chinese 多穗藨草
Chinese 海滨三棱草
Chinese 三棱草

Subspecies (abbr. subsp./ssp.) Top

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Name Authority First published in
Bolboschoenus maritimus subsp. affinis (Roth) T.Koyama Brittonia 31: 284 (1979)
Bolboschoenus maritimus subsp. maritimus Unknown
Bolboschoenus maritimus subsp. paludosus (A.Nelson) T.Koyama Acta Phytotax. Geobot. 31: 148 (1980)

Varieties (abbr. var.) Top

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Subvarieties (abbr. subvar.) Top

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Forms (abbr. f.) Top

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Germination/Propagation Top

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Distribution (via POWO/KEW) Top

Legend for the distribution data:
- Doubtful data
- Extinct
- Introduced
- Native
  • Africa
    • Macaronesia
      • Azores
      • Cape Verde
      • Madeira
    • Northeast Tropical Africa
      • Chad
      • Sudan
    • Southern Africa
      • Cape Provinces
  • Asia-temperate
    • Arabian Peninsula
      • Gulf States
      • Kuwait
      • Oman
      • Saudi Arabia
    • Caucasus
      • North Caucasus
      • Transcaucasus
    • China
      • China North-central
      • Inner Mongolia
      • Qinghai
      • Tibet
      • Xinjiang
    • Eastern Asia
      • Korea
      • Nansei-shoto
      • Taiwan
    • Middle Asia
      • Kazakhstan
      • Kirgizstan
      • Tadzhikistan
      • Turkmenistan
      • Uzbekistan
    • Mongolia
      • Mongolia
    • Russian Far East
      • Amur
      • Khabarovsk
      • Primorye
    • Siberia
      • Altay
      • Chita
      • West Siberia
    • Western Asia
      • Afghanistan
      • Cyprus
      • East Aegean Islands
      • Iran
      • Turkey
  • Asia-tropical
    • Indian Subcontinent
      • Assam
      • Bangladesh
      • India
      • Pakistan
    • Indo-China
      • Cambodia
      • Laos
      • Thailand
      • Vietnam
  • Europe
    • Eastern Europe
      • Baltic States
      • Belarus
      • Central European Russia
      • East European Russia
      • Krym
      • North European Russia
      • Northwest European Russia
      • South European Russia
      • Ukraine
    • Middle Europe
      • Austria
      • Belgium
      • Czechoslovakia
      • Germany
      • Hungary
      • Netherlands
      • Poland
      • Switzerland
    • Northern Europe
      • Denmark
      • Finland
      • Great Britain
      • Ireland
      • Norway
      • Sweden
    • Southeastern Europe
      • Albania
      • Bulgaria
      • Greece
      • Italy
      • Kriti
      • Romania
      • Sicilia
      • Turkey-in-Europe
      • Yugoslavia
    • Southwestern Europe
      • Baleares
      • Corse
      • France
      • Portugal
      • Sardegna
      • Spain
  • Northern America
    • Eastern Canada
      • New Brunswick
      • Newfoundland
      • Nova Scotia
      • Ontario
      • Prince Edward Island
      • Québec
    • Mexico
      • Mexico Central
      • Mexico Northwest
      • Mexico Southwest
    • North-central U.S.A.
      • Illinois
      • Iowa
      • Kansas
      • Minnesota
      • Missouri
      • Nebraska
      • North Dakota
      • Oklahoma
      • South Dakota
    • Northeastern U.S.A.
      • Connecticut
      • Indiana
      • Maine
      • Massachusetts
      • Michigan
      • New Hampshire
      • New Jersey
      • New York
      • Ohio
      • Rhode Island
    • Northwestern U.S.A.
      • Colorado
      • Idaho
      • Montana
      • Oregon
      • Washington
      • Wyoming
    • South-central U.S.A.
      • New Mexico
      • Texas
    • Southeastern U.S.A.
      • Louisiana
      • Virginia
    • Southwestern U.S.A.
      • Arizona
      • California
      • Nevada
      • Utah
    • Subarctic America
      • Alaska
      • Northwest Territorie
    • Western Canada
      • Alberta
      • British Columbia
      • Manitoba
      • Saskatchewan
  • Southern America
    • Brazil
      • Brazil South
    • Caribbean
      • Cuba
    • Northern South America
      • Suriname
    • Southern South America
      • Argentina Northeast
      • Argentina Northwest
      • Argentina South
      • Chile Central
    • Western South America
      • Colombia
      • Peru

Links to other databases Top

Suggest others/fix!
Database ID/link to page
World Flora Online wfo-0000341695
Canadensys 4717
USDA Plants BOMA7
Tropicos 9900100
INPN 86131
Flora of Italy 8023
KEW urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:298094-1
The Plant List kew-221905
Plantarium 6731
Open Tree Of Life 687327
NCBI Taxonomy 76417
NBN Atlas NBNSYS0000002381
Nature Serve 2.128680
IUCN Red List 164276
IPNI 298094-1
iNaturalist 58345
GBIF 2718307
Freebase /m/0b6k31b
EPPO SCPMA
EOL 1125962
Elurikkus 3130
Calflora (Californian flora) 10797
US Library of Congress sh97003015
USDA GRIN 405576
Wikipedia Bolboschoenus_maritimus

Genomes (via NCBI) Top

No reference genome is available on NCBI yet. We are constantly monitoring for new data.

Scientific Literature Top

Below are displayed the latest 15 articles published in PMC (PubMed Central®) and other sources (DOI number only)!
If you wish to see all the related articles click here.
Title Authors Publication Released IDs
Ecological and phylogenetic aspects of the spring diet of three palaearctic species of swans Kouzov SA, Kravchuk AV, Koptseva EM, Gubelit YI, Zaynagutdinova EM, Abakumov EV BMC Ecol Evol 02-Feb-2024
PMCID:PMC10835875
doi:10.1186/s12862-024-02204-7
PMID:38302909
Assessment of the estuarine shoreline microplastics and mesoplastics of the River Itchen, Southampton (UK) for contaminants and for their interaction with invertebrate fauna Rose DL, Hudson MD, Bray S, Gaca P Environ Sci Pollut Res Int 27-Dec-2023
PMCID:PMC10799153
doi:10.1007/s11356-023-31396-6
PMID:38150160
Discovery of Anti-Coronavirus Cinnamoyl Triterpenoids Isolated from Hippophae rhamnoides during a Screening of Halophytes from the North Sea and Channel Coasts in Northern France Al Ibrahim M, Akissi ZL, Desmarets L, Lefèvre G, Samaillie J, Raczkiewicz I, Sahpaz S, Dubuisson J, Belouzard S, Rivière C, Séron K Int J Mol Sci 22-Nov-2023
PMCID:PMC10705938
doi:10.3390/ijms242316617
PMID:38068938
Long term impacts of endozoochory and salinity on germination of wetland plants after entering simulated seed banks Espinar JL, Figuerola J, Green AJ Front Plant Sci 31-Oct-2023
PMCID:PMC10644059
doi:10.3389/fpls.2023.1275622
PMID:38023866
Vascular Plant Species Inventory of Mexico’s Revillagigedo National Park: Awareness of Alien Invaders as a Sine Qua Non Prerequisite for Island Conservation Domínguez-Meneses A, Martínez-Gómez JE, Mejía-Saulés T, Acosta-Rosado I, Stadler S Plants (Basel) 30-Sep-2023
PMCID:PMC10575041
doi:10.3390/plants12193455
PMID:37836194
Evaluation of Anticancer Activity of 76 Plant Species Collected in Andalusia (Spain) against Lung Cancer Cells Jiménez-González V, Benítez G, Pastor JE, López-Lázaro M, Calderón-Montaño JM Plants (Basel) 15-Sep-2023
PMCID:PMC10536323
doi:10.3390/plants12183275
PMID:37765439
Interference Effects of Commercial Persistent Luminescence Materials on Rice Germination and Seedling Growth Zhu N, Wei X, Yu J, Zhang S, Hu D, Li P, Xia Y, Song K Plants (Basel) 05-Jul-2023
PMCID:PMC10346697
doi:10.3390/plants12132554
PMID:37447115
Halophytic Clonal Plant Species: Important Functional Aspects for Existence in Heterogeneous Saline Habitats Ievinsh G Plants (Basel) 21-Apr-2023
PMCID:PMC10144567
doi:10.3390/plants12081728
PMID:37111952
Wrack Burial Limits Germination and Establishment of Yellow Flag Iris (Iris pseudacorus L.) Castillo JM, Gallego-Tévar B, Grewell BJ Plants (Basel) 30-Mar-2023
PMCID:PMC10096986
doi:10.3390/plants12071510
PMID:37050136
Wild Edible Plants of Andalusia: Traditional Uses and Potential of Eating Wild in a Highly Diverse Region Benítez G, Molero-Mesa J, González-Tejero MR Plants (Basel) 07-Mar-2023
PMCID:PMC10051205
doi:10.3390/plants12061218
PMID:36986907
Epipalaeolithic animal tending to Neolithic herding at Abu Hureyra, Syria (12,800–7,800 calBP): Deciphering dung spherulites Smith A, Oechsner A, Rowley-Conwy P, Moore AM PLoS One 14-Sep-2022
PMCID:PMC9473395
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0272947
PMID:36103475
Parental effects driven by resource provisioning in Alternanthera philoxeroides—A simulation case study Wang LH, Si J, Luo FL, Dong BC, Yu FH Front Plant Sci 07-Sep-2022
PMCID:PMC9490186
doi:10.3389/fpls.2022.872065
PMID:36160980
Development of a rice herbicide, fenquinotrione Nagamatsu A, Ueda K, Tamai R, Tani S, Yamamoto S J Pestic Sci 20-Aug-2022
PMCID:PMC9706282
doi:10.1584/jpestics.J22-02
PMID:36479456
A critical analysis of sources, pollution, and remediation of selenium, an emerging contaminant Ullah H, Lun L, Rashid A, Zada N, Chen B, Shahab A, Li P, Ali MU, Lin S, Wong MH Environ Geochem Health 16-Aug-2022
PMCID:PMC9379879
doi:10.1007/s10653-022-01354-1
PMID:35972610
Field evidence for litter and self‐DNA inhibitory effects on Alnus glutinosa roots Bonanomi G, Zotti M, Idbella M, Termolino P, De Micco V, Mazzoleni S New Phytol 10-Aug-2022
PMCID:PMC9805126
doi:10.1111/nph.18391
PMID:35852010

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