About Luzula hitchcockii Hämet-Ahti
Luzula hitchcockii Hämet-Ahti is a species of flowering plant in the rush family, with the common names smooth woodrush and Hitchcock's wood rush. It is native to western North America, ranging from British Columbia and Alberta down to Oregon and Wyoming. Some taxonomic treatments classify this plant as a variety of Luzula glabrata. This is a rhizomatous perennial rush that produces rounded, hollow stems growing up to 50 centimeters tall. Its leaves are shiny, red-tipped, and a few centimeters long. The inflorescence holds solitary or paired flowers that have small reddish or brown tepals. The fruit is a reddish-brown capsule that holds 3 seeds. This plant often forms large colonies, growing into a thick mat that can prevent other plants from sprouting. It grows in the understory of subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa), mountain hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana), and subalpine larch (Larix lyallii) stands in subalpine and alpine climates. It occurs in high elevation habitats with long-lasting snowpack, and is an indicator of cold sites with late-melting snow. Common understory species that grow alongside this rush include grouse whortleberry (Vaccinium scoparium), Sitka valerian (Valeriana sitchensis), mountain arnica (Arnica latifolia), and menziesia (Menziesia ferruginea). 13 plants found in this rush's habitat provide food for grizzly bears. Caribou sometimes give birth in stands of this rush.
