Carex xerophila

Chaparral sedge, Chaparral Sedge

Family: Cyperaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.2

Chaparral sedge is a rare (CNPS 1B.2) California native perennial found in northern Sierra Nevada Mountains on dry gabbro or serpentine soils in open forest, scrub, and chaparral edges at elevations of 450 to 770 meters. Flowering sparsely from early spring, this sedge produces green and dark purple-tipped flowers in delicate clusters. Growing in dense to loose tufts with stems 10 to 35 centimeters tall, it forms distinctive reddish to dark purple basal sheaths. Its leaves are narrow, 1.7 to 3.8 millimeters wide, green and not glaucous, with subtle venation on the leaf undersides. The fruits are small brown structures approximately 2 to 2.5 millimeters long with strong veining and a short beak.

Habitat: dry gabbro or serpentine soils in open forest, scrub, thicket edges, chaparral, often with

Elevation: 450-770 m

Bioregions: n SN.

California counties: Yuba, Nevada, Butte, 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.