Description: This native perennial sedge is
1–2½' tall, consisting of a dense tuft of leafy culms. Both fertile
and some infertile shoots are present; the latter have more leaves. Each
fertile culm is erect to ascending; it has 2-3 alternate leaves along the lower
1/3 of its length (also dried remnants of older leaves). The stiff slender
culms are light to medium green, glabrous, and 3-angled. The leaf blades of
fertile shoots are about 4-8" long and up to 3 mm. across; blades of vegetative
shoots are somewhat longer. The typical blade is ascending at the base and
curves outward toward the middle; it is light to medium green, glabrous,
channeled along the middle, and rough-textured along its margins. The sheaths
are tight and hairless; the inner side of
each
sheath is membranous, while the outer 2 sides are light to medium green and
longitudinally veined. Each fertile culm terminates in an inflorescence
consisting of 2-4 sessile spikelets; these spikelets are clustered closely
together (collectively spanning about 1½–2½ cm. in length).
Each spikelet is 7-9 mm. long and 6-7 mm. across; it is globoid-ovoid in shape,
consisting of a dense cluster of widely spreading to ascending perigynia and
scales. Most florets are female, although some toward the bottom are male. Both
the bottom and apex of each spikelet is well-rounded. Each perigynium is
3.5–4.5 mm. long and 2.0–2.5 mm. across; it is ovoid with a long
beak, rounded at the bottom, flattened (plano-convex), and membranous along its
margins. There are several longitudinal veins on the outer surface, while the
inner surface has a few fine veins that are difficult to see. Immature
perigynia are whitish green, while mature perigynia become brown. The
pistillate scales are shorter than the perigynia and lanceolate-oblong in
shape; each of these scales is green-veined in the middle and broadly
membranous along the margins. The bracts of the inflorescence are scale-like or
absent. The blooming period occurs during the late spring. The achene-bearing
perigynia are blown about by the wind or float on water, thereby distributing
the achenes to new locations. Each small achene is about 1.5 mm. long, 1.0 mm.
across, lenticular (ovoid & flattened), and usually with a small point at
the bottom. The root system is fibrous and short-rhizomatous.
Cultivation: The preference is full or partial sun
and wet to mesic conditions. This sedge adapts to soil containing loam or
clay-loam; in open areas, it is slightly aggressive and weedy in open
situations.
Range & Habitat:
Troublesome Sedge is common in central and northern Illinois; in southern areas
of the state, it is occasional or absent (see
Distribution
Map). This sedge adapts to a wide variety of habitats, including wet to
dry-mesic prairies, open woodlands, swamps, thickets, abandoned fields, wet
depressions in sunny areas, degraded wetlands, and roadside ditches. This sedge
is often found in habitats with a history of disturbance.
Faunal
Associations: Several species of butterflies, skippers, and moths
feed on Carex spp. (sedges); the
Lepidoptera Table lists many
of these species. Other insects also feed on sedges, including leaf beetles,
leafhoppers,
grasshoppers, stink bugs, and others (see the
Insect Table for a listing
of these species). Because Troublesome Sedge occurs in a wide variety of
habitats (wetlands, prairies, & open woodlands), this sedge (and others) is
a potential source of food to many vertebrate animals. Waterfowl, upland
gamebirds, and many songbirds eat the seeds of sedges (see
Bird Table). Other animals
that feed on sedges include Chelydra serpentina (Snapping Turtle),
Kinosternum subrubrum (Eastern Mud Turtle), Gray Squirrel and Fox
Squirrel (seeds/seedheads), Black Bear (both foliage & seedheads), Common
Mole (roots), and Prairie Vole (foliage, seeds). While sedge foliage is
non-toxic to hoofed mammalian herbivores (deer, cattle, horses, etc.), it is
not preferred as a source of forage.
Photographic Location: A seasonal wetland at Judge
Webber Park in Urbana, Illinois.
Comments: Notwithstanding its strange name, this is
an attractive sedge with tight bunches of slender leaves and prickly-appearing
seedheads. It resembles several other Carex spp. in the Ovales section
and can be difficult to identify. In general, Troublesome Sedge has the
following set of key characteristics: 1) It has only 2-4 spikelets (rarely 5)
that are clustered closely together, 2) these spikelets are nearly globoid and
they have well-rounded bottoms, 3) the typical perigynium is about 4 mm. long
and 2.0–2.5 mm. across, and 4) the leaf blades are less than 3.5 mm.
across. Other similar sedges include Carex normalis, Carex
cristatella, Carex brevior, and Carex festucacea. Two of
these species, Carex normalis and Carex cristatella, have wider
leaf blades (up to 6 mm. across) and more spikelets per inflorescence (about
4-12). The sedge Carex brevior also has more spikelets per inflorescence
(about 4-8), slightly wider leaf blades (up to 4 mm. across), and slighter
wider perigynia (2.5–3.5 mm. across). The remaining sedge, Carex
festucacea, often has a similar number of spikelets per inflorescence, but
they are less densely clustered together than the spikelets of Troublesome
Sedge; also, the perigynia of Carex festucacea are a little shorter
(typically about 3 mm. in length).