Carex aquatilis var. dives

Sitka sedge

Family: Cyperaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Sitka sedge is a California native perennial found in northern coastal, Klamath Range, northern coastal redwood, and central coastal regions in wet meadows, shores, and fresh water habitats at elevations below 1,100 meters. Flowering spikelets are 4.5 to 11.5 centimeters long with lower stalks generally nodding, producing clusters with staminate tips. Growing with distinctive sedge-like stems, this plant develops leaves 5 to 18 millimeters wide with purple-dotted leaf sheaths and purple-brown mouth openings. Its leaf blades feature intriguing purple-brown details, with leaf sheaths displaying delicate purple dots against green backgrounds. The fruit develops small perigynia 1.9 to 3.5 millimeters long, subtly marked with yellow or purple dots and a short 0.2 to 0.4 millimeter beak.

Habitat: Wet meadows, shores, fresh water

Elevation: < 1100 m

Bioregions: NCo, KR, NCoRO, CCo

California counties: Humboldt, Mendocino, Siskiyou, San Luis Obispo, San Bernardino, Del Norte, Contra Costa, Shasta, Santa Clara, Plumas, Napa, Santa Barbara, Inyo, El Dorado

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.