Olney's Threesquare
Schoenoplectus americanus
In the Carolinas and Georgia, found in tidal freshwater to brackish marshes. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Arkansas (estimated). How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 76%
- Height
- It has erect, sharply triangular and deeply concave-sided culms growing up to 5 feet in height [10,21].
- Light
- Partial shade, Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Wet to standing water
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At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Bloom
- May to June
- Fruiting season
- June to September
Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves
Recorded in 2 Arkansas counties.
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Arkansas. Shared habitat, not food. 62 animals.
Widespread birds also seen here (57)
Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.
- American Goldfinch
- American Kestrel
- American Robin
- Baltimore Oriole
- Belted Kingfisher
- Black-crowned Night-heron
- Blue Grosbeak
- Blue Jay
- Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
- Brown Creeper
- Brown Thrasher
- Cedar Waxwing
- Chimney Swift
- Chipping Sparrow
- Cliff Swallow
- Common Nighthawk
- Common Yellowthroat
- Cooper's Hawk
- Double-crested Cormorant
- Downy Woodpecker
- Eastern Kingbird
- Eastern Screech-owl
- Eurasian Collared-dove
- European Starling
- Golden-crowned Kinglet
- Great Horned Owl
- Hairy Woodpecker
- Harris's Sparrow
- Hooded Merganser
- Indigo Bunting
- Mourning Dove
- Northern Cardinal
- Northern Flicker
- Northern Mockingbird
- Orange-crowned Warbler
- Orchard Oriole
- Osprey
- Pileated Woodpecker
- Pine Siskin
- Purple Finch
- Red-bellied Woodpecker
- Red-headed Woodpecker
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Red-winged Blackbird
- Ruby-crowned Kinglet
- Ruby-throated Hummingbird
- Sharp-shinned Hawk
- Spotted Sandpiper
- Tufted Titmouse
- Turkey Vulture
- White-throated Sparrow
- Wild Turkey
- Wood Thrush
- Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
- Yellow-billed Cuckoo
- Yellow-breasted Chat
- Yellow-rumped Warbler
Who uses this plant?
7CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AR
Genus host records with ranges including AR · Scirpus
- Apamea sordensBordered Apamea, Rustic Shoulder-Knot
- Bactra furfuranaRush Bactra
- Bactra verutanaJavelin Moth
- Euphyes dionDion Skipper, Sedge Skipper
- Globia oblongaOblong Sedge Borer Moth, Large Noagria
- Ledaea perditalisLost Owlet, 3-Stripe Cephalanthus caterpillar, Buttonbush Owlet
- Donacaula dispersella
0BeesSoutheastern regional records
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
6BirdsRecorded eating Schoenoplectus in Arkansas
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Birds whose range includes Arkansas, most records first.
- SoraSeeds. 12 diet records
- CanvasbackSeeds and roots. 3 diet records
- Snow GooseRoots. 2 diet records
- MallardSeeds. 2 diet records
- Northern PintailSeeds. 2 diet records
- Lesser ScaupSeeds. 1 diet record
Direct food only. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Birds that eat Schoenoplectus 6
Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.
- SoraPorzana carolina
- CanvasbackAythya valisineria
- Snow GooseChen caerulescens
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Northern PintailAnas acuta
- Lesser ScaupAythya affinis
Plant details
- Family
- Cyperaceae
- Flower color
- Yellow or brown
- Fruit begins
- June
- Fruit ends
- September
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “Late May to June” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Yellow or brown” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Fruit begins · “June” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit ends · “September” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Height · “It has erect, sharply triangular and deeply concave-sided culms growing up to 5 feet in height (1.5 m) [10,21].” · Fire Effects Information System: Schoenoplectus americanus (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs) · Source botanical description; original units and scope retained
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Light · “Partial shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil · “Water; Wet (documented habitat)” · Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition · Carolinas and Georgia
Also known as
Scirpus olneyi Gray; bulrush
Conservation status
| Arkansas rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| AR status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Sources
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025)
- Arkansas occurrence source
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications