The rush of Desfontaine is a species with a wide, palaeo-subtropical distribution present, with two subspecies, in Liguria and in almost all regions of Central, Southern and Insular Italy (missing in Umbria, Campania and Basilicata). It grows along the edges of pools and ponds, on wet sandy soils, from sea level to about 600 m. The species is rare in the outer belt of the Sardinian temporary ponds. It has been indicated in the Regional Red Lists as a threatened species (Conti et al., 1997). The genus name, from the Latin 'iúngere' (to join, to tie), refers to the ancient use of weaving the stems and leaves of rush species to create different objects; the species is dedicated to the French botanist René Louiche Desfontaines (1750-1831), who studied the flora of North Africa and the author of a Flora Atlantica. Flowering period: June to July. |
