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Name That Plant!

ID grassy volunteer

CasaLester RTP, NC (7b)

8 years ago

We have this grass-like clump growing in part shade (under a Japanese maple). It is flowering right now. The stems feel triangular (not much exposed but covered by leaf sheaths), so it could be a sedge. And because of a slight bluish tint, our uneducated guess has zeroed in on Carex laxiculmis, but we would like to know expert identification.

Featured Answer

jekeesl (south-central Arkansas)

8 years ago

You do have C. laxiculmis in your area. But laxiculmis typically has 1 staminate and 3 pistillate spikes, with pistillate spikes long-exserted and drooping, and just 4-9 perigynia/spike. Your plant is something else.

Hopefully, an expert from your area will chime in; but, Carex are notoriously difficult to ID from photos.

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Comments (6)

Sabji garden (7b), Raleigh NC
8 years ago
Casa Lester, You may have seen this , david rosen.. 2 pdf links.

http://txmn.org/cradle/files/2010/07/TP-David-Rosen_Sedges_Part-1.pdf

http://txmn.org/cradle/files/2010/07/TP-David-Rosen_Sedges_Part-2.pdf
CasaLester RTP, NC (7b) thanked Sabji garden (7b), Raleigh NC
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karen__w z7 NC
7 years ago
I've got that here in Durham, too. I'm no expert but have thought that it might be Carex flaccosperma. Now that it's in bloom I'll try to key it, out but Carex are hard.
CasaLester RTP, NC (7b) thanked karen__w z7 NC
CasaLester RTP, NC (7b)
Original Author
5 years ago
One more picture of our favorite volunteer carex - apparently with better developed flowers:
CasaLester RTP, NC (7b)
Original Author
5 years ago
Bumping up since another of our recent posts did not show up in the forum index.
jekeesl (south-central Arkansas)
5 years ago
The Carex shown in April 9th photo is much less mature than the one featured in the original post. If you truly want this identified, you will need to dig a couple of plants and take them (entire clump, roots and all) to a suitable facility. Photos of the plants in the wild would also help. It requires good (mature) samples in hand, which judging from the first photo would be from plants collected around the first part of May. It also requires someone with a dissecting microscope, a knowledge of local Carex species and a dichotomous key that is designed for your area. That usually means going to a University with a Botany program and herbarium, or to the top-tier botanists in your state. Places like that are almost always happy to help the public identify plants. Your chances of receiving a correct ID from online photos are small, considering that there are more than 600 recognized Carex species in the States.

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