Carex multicaulis

Stick sedge, Stick Sedge

Family: Cyperaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Stick sedge is a California native perennial sedge found in the Klamath Ranges, northern Coast Ranges, Cascade Range, northern Sierra Nevada, Sierra Nevada, southern Coast Ranges, Transverse Ranges, Peninsular Ranges, and Modoc Plateau in forest habitats at elevations of 15 to 2,200 meters. This sedge forms multiple stems 20 to 60 centimeters tall, with slender, flat or slightly rolled leaves less than 1.5 millimeters wide. Growing in dense, clustered tufts with round or slightly three-angled stems that are smooth toward the tip, the plant has distinctive leaf-like bracts that often extend beyond its spikelet. Its narrow leaves are significantly shorter than the inflorescence, with white-margined green bracts clasping the base of the plant. The fruit consists of several appressed to ascending perigynia, 5 to 7.2 millimeters long, with faint veins between two prominent marginal veins.

Habitat: Forest

Elevation: 15-2200 m

Bioregions: KR, NCoR, CaR, n&ampc SNF, SNH, SCoR, TR, PR, MP

California counties: Mendocino, Shasta, Fresno, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Butte, San Diego, Lake, Lassen, Madera, Mariposa, Modoc, Monterey, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Riverside, Sierra, Siskiyou, Tehama, Trinity, Tulare, Tuolumne, Ventura, Kern, Calaveras, El Dorado, Napa, Sonoma, Glenn, Humboldt, Yuba, Santa Clara, Del Norte, Santa Barbara

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