*Phragmites australis (Cavanilles) Trinius ex Steudel. Common Reed, Old World Reed. Phen: Aug-Oct. Hab: Brackish and freshwater marshes, dredge-spoil deposit islands, ditches. Dist: Native of Eurasia. Fox, Godfrey, & Blomquist (1950) report its first collection in NC (in 1948). In most of our area, reed is of relatively recent introduction, reported from only nine counties in Radford, Ahles, & Bell (1968), but now a serious invasive weed in coastal areas, where it aggressively colonizes freshwater and brackish marshes, excluding the native species.

Origin/Endemic status: Paleotropics

Synonymy: = K4, NY, Haines (2010); = Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud. ssp. australis – Ar, FlGr, Il, K3, Mi, Pa, Va, Saltonstall & Hauber (2007), Ward (2010d); = Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud. var. australis – FNA25, NE, Saltonstall, Peterson, & Soreng (2004); = Phragmites communis Trin. var. communis – F; < Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud. – C, ETx1, GW1, K1, Mo1, NcTx, Tn; < Phragmites communis Trin. – G, HC, RAB, Tat, WV; < Phragmites phragmites (L.) H.Karst. – S, S13

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Wetland Indicator Status:

• Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain: FACW (taxonomic split from wetland indicator species)
• Eastern Mountains and Piedmont: FACW (taxonomic split from wetland indicator species)
• Great Plains: FACW (taxonomic split from wetland indicator species)
• Midwest: FACW (taxonomic split from wetland indicator species)
• Northcentral & Northeast: FACW (taxonomic split from wetland indicator species)

Heliophily: 9