Scientific: Schoenoplectus acutus
Spanish: Tule
Awaswas: Rookush
Tule is a salt-tolerant plant that many wetland animals use for nesting materials and food. Indigenous people also used tule to build houses and an array of items like baskets, mats and even boats. While tule can withstand periods of drought, they do best when the rhizomes are submerged in up to a foot of standing water.
![](https://www.santacruzmuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/20200709_112917-scaled-e1644523126540.jpg)
![Mural of an Ohlone village by artist Ann Thiermann](https://www.santacruzmuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/OhloneMural_Not-Cropped-edited.jpg)
![Decoy duck made of tule](https://www.santacruzmuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Tule-duck-edited.png)