Carex pensylvanica (Pennsylvania Sedge)

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Detailed Information

Flower:

A scaly purplish-brown spike, ½ to about 1 inch long, at the top of a slender stem. This is actually 2 spikes, the upper with thread-like creamy yellow stamens that turn brown with age, the lower with dull white pistils, also thread-like and about as long as the stamens. Most plants have both spikes, the pistillate spikes blooming before the staminate spikes. A fertile plant typically has several flowering stems, though not all plants flower.

Leaves and stem:

There is a small tuft of basal leaves, erect to spreading, and a few alternate leaves on each stem (culm). Each leaf is up to 1/8 inch wide and may be longer than the flowering stem but usually shorter. The roots are reddish brown; the base of the leaves and stems are reddish as well. Remnants of leaves from the previous year can persist and are somewhat fibrous. Stems are slender, smooth and 3-sided.

Notes:

Pennsylvania Sedge is very common, found throughout Minnesota, and is one of the earliest bloomers in the spring. It tends to grow in loose colonies, with its small clumps a few inches to about a foot apart, and spreading primarily by its root system (rhizomes). While it may grow as tall as 1½ feet, it is more commonly about half that size. There are some other sedges with similar flowering spikes, but Pennsylvania Sedge can most easily be distinguished by the colony of small scattered clumps and reddish roots. It can be a bit weedy; an abundance of Pennsylvania Sedge is an indication of degraded habitat.

More photos

• a clump of Pennsylvania Sedge, about 6 inches tall
• a small colony of plants emerging in spring
• spring blooms

Photos taken at Long Lake Regional Park, New Brighton, MN and Vadnais/Snail Lake Regional Park, Shoreview, MN April 2009 and 2010

Comments

Have you seen this plant in Minnesota, or have any other comments about it?