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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. | |||||||||
| LONG-STALKED SEDGE | |||||||||
| LATIN NAME: Carex pedunculata | |||||||||
| WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE? | |||||||||
| Long-stalked sedge grows as tall as 30 cm from a woody rootstock. The stems are densely tufted. The bottom of the stem is covered by leafless reddish-brown sheaths. The leaves are longer than the stems. There are usually about five spikes in the inflorescence, which is spread out over the entire length of the fertile stem. The spikes have the male flowers above the female flowers and are on long thread-like stalks. The perigynia are two-ridged and have a fine coat of hairs. | |||||||||
| WHERE DOES IT GROW? | |||||||||
| Long-stalked sedge grows in moist mixed forests with a lot of winter snow cover. | |||||||||
| WHERE IS IT FOUND IN SASKATCHEWAN? | |||||||||
| This species is found in east-central Saskatchewan in the Mid-Boreal Lowland ecoregion. | |||||||||
| WHY IS IT RARE? | |||||||||
| Long-stalked sedge is endangered in Saskatchewan because it is rare. It is restricted to one region of the province and most local populations are small. | |||||||||
| HOW TO IDENTIFY LONG-STALKED SEDGE | |||||||||
| * Are the spikes on long stalks? * Do the spikes have the male flowers above the female flowers? * Are the leaves longer than the stems? * Did you find it in east-central Saskatchewan? | |||||||||
| If you answered yes to all of these questions, you may have found long-stalked sedge! | |||||||||
