Carex cespitosa (Tuft carex) is a species of perennial sedge of the genus Carex which can be found growing in tufts (caespitose), as the Latin specific epithet cespitosa suggests.[1] The name is synonymous with Carex cespitosa f. retorta.[2]

Carex cespitosa
Inflorescence
Tufted (caespitose) growth form
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Cyperaceae
Genus: Carex
Species:
C. cespitosa
Binomial name
Carex cespitosa

The species is able to hybridise with the common sedge (Carex nigra) to produce a plant 20–50 centimetres (8–20 in) tall, flowering from May to June.[3] The species can be found in all of Scandinavia, ranging from common to rare, and central parts of Europe, becoming rare to the west and towards the Mediterranean, and including isolated locations in Great Britain and the Iberian Peninsula.[1][4]

The species is often found in a mosaic with other Carex, but can become almost entirely dominant. It grows in very moist soil.[5]

References edit

  1. ^ a b C. A. M. Lidman (1917–1926). Bilder ur Nordens Flora. Stockholm. p. 441.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  2. ^ "Carex cespitosa var. cespitosa". www.kew.org. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  3. ^ Arne Anderberg. "Carex cespitosa L." Den virtuella floran. Swedish Museum of Natural History. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  4. ^ Pedro Jiménez-Mejías; Andreas Hilpold; Božo Frajman; Mihai Puşcaş; Jacob Koopman; Attila Mesterházy; Vít Grulich; Kåre Arnstein Lye; Santiago Martín-Bravo (2014). "Carex cespitosa: reappraisal of its distribution in Europe" (PDF). Willdenowia. 44 (3): 327–343. doi:10.3372/wi.44.44303. hdl:11250/276382. S2CID 84236065.
  5. ^ Lars Påhlsson (1995). Vegetationstyper i Norden. Nordiska Ministerrådet. ISBN 9789291205936. Retrieved 17 August 2014.