Carex riparia
Great Pond Sedge
a perennial evergreen member of the Carex genus in the family Cyperaceae.
Taxonomy and growth
- Family
- Cyperaceae
- Genus
- Carex
- Life cycle
- perennial
- Foliage
- evergreen
- Growth rate
- vigorous
- Height
- 1.5 m
- Spread
- 2 m
- Fertility
- Wind
- Flower type
- monoecious
- Pollinators
- Wind
Uses
Edible uses
This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.
Root - cooked[4]. Seed[4]. No further details are given, but the seed is small and fiddly to use[K].
- Plant part
- Root
- Plant part
- Seed
Material uses
This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.
The straw is used for bedding[7].
- Product or use
- Bedding
Environment
- Range
- Much of Europe, excluding the north but including Britain, N. Africa, W. Asia and the Caucasus.
- Habitat
- By slow flowing rivers, in ditches and ponds and occasionally on drier ground[3].
- Light
- full sun
- Shade tolerance
- light shade
- Water
- high
- Hardiness
- Zone 6+
- Soil textures
- sandy, loamy, clay
- Soil pH
- acid, neutral, alkaline
- Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
- No
- Drought
- intolerant
Propagation
This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.
Seed - sow in situ in the spring in a moist soil in light shade. If seed is in short supply it can be sown in a cold frame and be planted out in the summer. The seed usually germinates in 2 - 6 weeks at 15°c[1]. Division in spring[5]. Very easy, larger clumps can be replanted direct into their permanent positions, though it is best to pot up smaller clumps and grow them on in a cold frame until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer or following spring.
Cultivation
This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.
Easily grown in a damp to wet soil in full sun or shade[2][5]. A very aggressive and invasive plant[2][5]. Members of this genus are rarely if ever troubled by browsing deer[6].
References
Bird. R. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 3. Thompson and Morgan. 1989-00-00
Grounds. R. Ornamental Grasses. Christopher Helm 1989-00-00 ISBN 0-7470-1219-9
Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962-00-00
Schofield. J. J. Discovering Wild Plants - Alaska, W. Canada and the Northwest.
Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Thomas. G. S. Perennial Garden Plants J. M. Dent & Sons, London. 1990-00-00 ISBN 0 460 86048 8
Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974-00-00 ISBN 0094579202