Form: Baumea articulata has tall erect perennial tussock with stout rhizome
Foliage: Stout hollow leaves are basal, similar to the flowering stem and as long or longer, to 10mm wide. Leaf sheath is straw-coloured
Flowers: Loose drooping flowerhead 15-45cm x 10cm wide of many 2-5-flowered spikelets. Lowest floral bract shorter than flowerhead. Red-brown flower colour
Fruit: Nut wrinkled, egg-shaped, pale to dark red-brown
Habitat: Wet soils in swamps or in lagoons or slow-moving watercourses Distinctive Features Stiff, erect, nodeless flowering stems are ridged, round in cross section 4-10mm wide with partitions across the stem
Similar Species: Superficially similar to Eleocharis sphacelata and Schoenoplectus tabermaemontani, distinctive internal bands in the leaves
Comments: Excellent for stabilising wet slopes and providing habitat for small birds and frogs
