Carex alba, called the small white sedge, white-flowered sedge or just white sedge (a name it shares with other members of its genus), is a species of sedge in the family Cyperaceae.[2] It is typically found in temperate forests of Eurasia, from the Pyrenees to the Russian Far East.[1] It is the main host plant for the woodland brown butterfly, Lopinga achine.[3]
| Carex alba | |
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| Habit | |
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| Botanical illustration | |
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Cyperaceae |
| Genus: | Carex |
| Species: | C. alba
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| Binomial name | |
| Carex alba | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
Description
editCarex alba is a species of sedge, typically growing in thick clumps between 15–30 cm (5.9–11.8 in) in height. Stems are slender, trigonous, smooth; with sheaths that are leafless at the base. Leaves are shorter than the stem, and flat-bladed. Bracts are greenish-brown and sheathlike. Flowers take the form of terminal spikes, and are white in colour. Nutlets are dark brown, obovate-elliptic, trigonous. Flowers and fruits in June to July.[4]
Distribution and habitat
editCarex alba favours dry, wooded areas,[5] temperate pine forests and slopes.[6]
References
edit- ^ a b "Carex alba". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
- ^ "Carex alba (CRXAA)". EPPO Global Database. European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization. 2022. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
- ^ Streitberger, Merle; Hermann, Gabriel; Kraus, Wolfgang; Fartmann, Thomas (2012). "Modern forest management and the decline of the Woodland Brown (Lopinga achine) in Central Europe". Forest Ecology and Management. 269: 239–248. doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2011.12.028.
- ^ "Carex alba Scop". The World Flora Online. October 30, 2024.
- ^ "Carex alba". www.hessenhof.nl. Retrieved 2024-11-02.
- ^ "Laîche blanche". INPN - Nature France. November 2, 2024.