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elk sedge
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Mertens' sedge
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| Plants loosely cespitose or short rhizomatous, with thick, dark, shallow rhizomes; culms 12–50 cm, triangular in cross section. |
Plants cespitose, 30–100 cm tall. |
1.1–3.5 mm wide; flat; evergreen; leathery; as long as or longer than the culms. |
4–8 mm wide. |
spike solitary, androgynous, lacking inflorescence bracts; male terminal portion 1–2.5 cm long, separated from the 1–3 perigynia by a short internode. |
spikes 4–9, 1–4 cm long; lateral spikes female or gynaecandrous; the terminal spike gynaecandrous. |
obovate, rounded at the top, 5–7(8.5) × 1.8–2.8 mm, green; whitish, or brown; beak small; stigmas 3. |
ovate or orbicular, flattened except over the tiny achene, 4–5 × 2.5–3.5 mm, green to brown; beak 0.2–0.4 mm long; stigmas 3. |
trigonous. |
trigonous, filling the lower half or less of the perigynium body. |
the lower longer than the perigynia; the upper reduced; more or less brown with paler midrib and margins, pointed to awned. |
brown to dark purplish black; shorter and much narrower than the perigynia; apex obtuse, mucronate. |
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=62. |
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Well-drained soils in dry, open, conifer forests, aspen stands, and openings, rarely in sagebrush, on both serpentine and nonserpentine substrates. 100–2500 m. BR, BW, Col, ECas, Lava, Owy, Sisk. CA, ID, NV, WA; north to southeastern British Columbia, east to CO, PA. Native. Carex geyeri is a common ground cover in open forest, especially in northeastern Oregon, recognized by its tough, flat, evergreen leaves from dark, scaly rhizomes. Similar pinegrass, Calamagrostis rubescens, usually has hairy internodes and when in flower it is easily distinguished. Carex geyeri is important food for wildlife and livestock, especially in winter. In southwestern Oregon, C. geyeri can be confused with C. multicaulis, which is densely cespitose and has proportionately shorter, usually involute leaves, and longer, green, leaf-like, lower female scales. |
Mesic to somewhat dry open forests, meadows, roadsides, stream banks, pumice plains and disturbed places at low to moderately high elevations in the mountains, usually in partial shade. 50–2200 m. BW, Casc, CR, Est, Sisk. CA, ID, WA; north to AK, northeast to MT; Asia. Native. Distinctive C. mertensii has thick, dangling, sausage-shaped spikes and is common on roadsides and other disturbed sites in mesic montane forest. |
Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 202
Barbara Wilson, Richard Brainerd, Nick Otting |
Flora of Oregon, volume 1, page 215
Barbara Wilson, Richard Brainerd, Nick Otting |
C. abrupta, C. agastachys, C. amplifolia, C. angustata, C. aperta, C. aquatilis, C. arcta, C. arenaria, C. atherodes, C. athrostachya, C. atrosquama, C. aurea, C. barbarae, C. bebbii, C. bolanderi, C. brainerdii, C. brevior, C. breweri, C. buchananii, C. buxbaumii, C. californica, C. canescens, C. capillaris, C. capitata, C. chordorrhiza, C. comans, C. comosa, C. concinna, C. concinnoides, C. cordillerana, C. crawfordii, C. cusickii, C. davyi, C. deflexa, C. densa, C. diandra, C. disperma, C. distans, C. douglasii, C. duriuscula, C. echinata, C. exsiccata, C. feta, C. filifolia, C. fissuricola, C. fracta, C. gynocrates, C. gynodynama, C. halliana, C. harfordii, C. hassei, C. haydeniana, C. hendersonii, C. heteroneura, C. hirsutella, C. hirta, C. hoodii, C. hystericina, C. idahoa, C. illota, C. infirminervia, C. inops, C. integra, C. interior, C. interrupta, C. jonesii, C. kelloggii, C. klamathensis, C. kobomugi, C. laeviculmis, C. lasiocarpa, C. leporina, C. leporinella, C. leptalea, C. leptopoda, C. limosa, C. livida, C. longii, C. luzulina, C. lyngbyei, C. macrocephala, C. macrochaeta, C. media, C. mendocinensis, C. mertensii, C. mesochorea, C. micropoda, C. microptera, C. multicaulis, C. nardina, C. nebrascensis, C. nervina, C. neurophora, C. nigricans, C. nudata, C. obnupta, C. pachycarpa, C. pachystachya, C. pansa, C. paysonis, C. pellita, C. pelocarpa, C. pendula, C. petasata, C. phaeocephala, C. pluriflora, C. praeceptorum, C. praegracilis, C. praticola, C. preslii, C. pumila, C. raynoldsii, C. retrorsa, C. rossii, C. saxatilis, C. scabriuscula, C. scirpoidea, C. scoparia, C. scopulorum, C. serpenticola, C. serratodens, C. sheldonii, C. simulata, C. spectabilis, C. stipata, C. straminiformis, C. subbracteata, C. subfusca, C. subnigricans, C. sychnocephala, C. tahoensis, C. tiogana, C. tribuloides, C. tumulicola, C. unilateralis, C. utriculata, C. vallicola, C. vernacula, C. vesicaria, C. viridula, C. vulpinoidea, C. whitneyi, C. zikae |
C. abrupta, C. agastachys, C. amplifolia, C. angustata, C. aperta, C. aquatilis, C. arcta, C. arenaria, C. atherodes, C. athrostachya, C. atrosquama, C. aurea, C. barbarae, C. bebbii, C. bolanderi, C. brainerdii, C. brevior, C. breweri, C. buchananii, C. buxbaumii, C. californica, C. canescens, C. capillaris, C. capitata, C. chordorrhiza, C. comans, C. comosa, C. concinna, C. concinnoides, C. cordillerana, C. crawfordii, C. cusickii, C. davyi, C. deflexa, C. densa, C. diandra, C. disperma, C. distans, C. douglasii, C. duriuscula, C. echinata, C. exsiccata, C. feta, C. filifolia, C. fissuricola, C. fracta, C. geyeri, C. gynocrates, C. gynodynama, C. halliana, C. harfordii, C. hassei, C. haydeniana, C. hendersonii, C. heteroneura, C. hirsutella, C. hirta, C. hoodii, C. hystericina, C. idahoa, C. illota, C. infirminervia, C. inops, C. integra, C. interior, C. interrupta, C. jonesii, C. kelloggii, C. klamathensis, C. kobomugi, C. laeviculmis, C. lasiocarpa, C. leporina, C. leporinella, C. leptalea, C. leptopoda, C. limosa, C. livida, C. longii, C. luzulina, C. lyngbyei, C. macrocephala, C. macrochaeta, C. media, C. mendocinensis, C. mesochorea, C. micropoda, C. microptera, C. multicaulis, C. nardina, C. nebrascensis, C. nervina, C. neurophora, C. nigricans, C. nudata, C. obnupta, C. pachycarpa, C. pachystachya, C. pansa, C. paysonis, C. pellita, C. pelocarpa, C. pendula, C. petasata, C. phaeocephala, C. pluriflora, C. praeceptorum, C. praegracilis, C. praticola, C. preslii, C. pumila, C. raynoldsii, C. retrorsa, C. rossii, C. saxatilis, C. scabriuscula, C. scirpoidea, C. scoparia, C. scopulorum, C. serpenticola, C. serratodens, C. sheldonii, C. simulata, C. spectabilis, C. stipata, C. straminiformis, C. subbracteata, C. subfusca, C. subnigricans, C. sychnocephala, C. tahoensis, C. tiogana, C. tribuloides, C. tumulicola, C. unilateralis, C. utriculata, C. vallicola, C. vernacula, C. vesicaria, C. viridula, C. vulpinoidea, C. whitneyi, C. zikae |
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BC, 
CA, 
OR, 
WA
Flora NW, 
PNW Herbaria
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist (observations)
USDA Plants Database
