by DaySounds © 2013-16
Narrowleaf Cattails (Typha angustifolia )
and male spikes (these latter ones could be grounded to powder and used as flour).
Its leaves are longer than its spike stems, and there is a space between the female and
male spikes.
All Colorado cattails are edible. Two other species, which easily hybridize, with this one
and each-other are:
--Southern cattails (Typha domingensis), whose leaves are as long as their spike stems;
they have a space between male and female spikes; and these latter ones are light brown.
--Broadleaf cattails (Typha latifolia ), whose female and male spikes usually don't have
any space between them; oftentimes, the female spikes are much broader than the ones
producing and bearing the pollen; as the name indicates, the leaves are usually broader
than the other species.
Male spikes drop off from the stem little by little after having released the pollen.
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