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Species Image Gallery (opens in a new window) |
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| THE SEDGE FAMILY | |||||||||
| The sedge family is widespread around
the world, but these plants are usually found in damp habitats in subarctic
to temperate regions. The sedge family is very large, with approximately
5,315 species! There is a lot of variability within the family, but in general,
they are perennial herbs. The stems are solid and are frequently three sided.
The leaves are in three vertical rows. The basal sheath of the leaves is
closed. The leaves are linear and have the parallel venation typical of
the monocots. The inflorescences vary greatly among genera. In general,
flowers are in spikes or spikelets which are arranged into spikes, racemes,
panicles and umbrella-like clusters. In each spike there are bracts, usually
at least one per flower. The flowers are reduced, meaning that they do not
have obvious sepals and petals. The sepals and petals, if present, are often
in the form of bristles, scales or hairs. There are three stamens and two
or three carpels. The flowers may have both male and female parts or only
one of the two. In one of the largest genera, Carex, the ovary is enclosed
in a sac-like bract called the perigynium. The fruits are single-seeded,
lens-shaped or triangular structures called achenes. The sedges are an ecologically important family in Saskatchewan. Saskatchewan has 149 species belonging to the Cyperaceae. | |||||||||
| HOOD SEDGE | |||||||||
| LATIN NAME: Carex hoodii | |||||||||
| WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE? | |||||||||
| Hood sedge grows as tall as 70 cm from stout, black rootstocks. The stems are densely tufted and three sided. The leaves arise from the lower third of the stem and are almost as long as the inflorescence. The inflorescence is oval shaped and is made of four to eight crowded spikes. The lowest spike bract is prolonged into an awn. The other spike bracts are scale-like. The male flowers are above the female flowers in the same spike. The female flower scales are as long as but narrower than the perigynia. There are usually five to ten brown perigynia per spike. The female flowers have two stigmas. The achenes are lens-shaped. | |||||||||
| WHERE DOES IT GROW? | |||||||||
| Hood sedge prefers open, grassy banks and slopes. | |||||||||
| WHERE IS IT FOUND IN SASKATCHEWAN? | |||||||||
| This species is found in southwestern to central Saskatchewan in the Cypress Upland, Boreal Transition, and Mid-Boreal Upland ecoregions. | |||||||||
| WHY IS IT RARE? | |||||||||
| Hood sedge is threatened in Saskatchewan because it is rare. It occurs in a relatively small portion of the province in small local populations. | |||||||||
| HOW TO IDENTIFY HOOD SEDGE | |||||||||
| * Are the roots black? * Are the male flowers above the female flowers in the spike? * Are there 5 to 10 brown perigynia per spike? * Did you find it in southwestern or central Saskatchewan? | |||||||||
| If you answered yes to all of these questions, you may have found hood sedge! | |||||||||
