Jump to content

Carex stricta

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Tussock sedge)

Carex stricta

Secure  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Cyperaceae
Genus: Carex
Subgenus: Carex subg. Carex
Section: Carex sect. Phacocystis
Species:
C. stricta
Binomial name
Carex stricta
Synonyms
  • Carex elata Gooden.
  • Carex strictior Dewey

Carex stricta is a species of sedge known by the common names upright sedge[1] and tussock sedge.[2] The plant grows in moist marshes, forests and alongside bodies of water.[3] It grows up to 2 feet (0.61 m) tall and 2 feet (0.61 m) wide. When the leaves die, they build on top of or around the living plant, making a "tussock".[3] Widely distributed in and east of the Great Plains,[4] it is one of the most common wetland sedges in eastern North America.[5]

Their seeds are carried by the wind.[citation needed] When seeds land, they are eaten by birds such as dark-eyed junco, northern cardinal, wild turkey, and ducks such as mallard and wood duck. The seeds are also eaten by squirrels and other mammals.[3] The plant can also reproduce vegetatively via rhizomes, and often form colonies.[3]

It is a larval host to the black dash, the dun skipper, and the eyed brown.[6]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Carex stricta Lam., upright sedge". PLANTS Profile. United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved May 22, 2013.
  2. ^ Coladonato, M. 1994. Carex stricta. In: Fire Effects Information System, USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory.
  3. ^ a b c d Carex stricta. Archived 2012-10-01 at the Wayback Machine Study of Northern Virginia Ecology. Fairfax County Public Schools.
  4. ^ "Carex stricta". County-level distribution map from the North American Plant Atlas (NAPA). Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
  5. ^ Carex stricta. Flora of North America.
  6. ^ The Xerces Society (2016), Gardening for Butterflies: How You Can Attract and Protect Beautiful, Beneficial Insects, Timber Press.