Carex simulata
Encyclopedia
Carex simulata is a species of sedge
known by the common name analogue sedge.
and western Canada
, where it grows in many types of wet habitat, from mountain meadows to ditches, often in alkaline conditions.
. The inflorescence
is dense and rounded to open and long, containing several flower spikes.
The plant is generally dioecious
, with individual plants bearing male or female flowers, but not both. The male, staminate
inflorescence is usually longer and more narrow than the oval-shaped female, pistillate
spike. Female flowers bear fruits which are coated in dark brown, shiny, pointed perigynia.
Carex
Carex is a genus of plants in the family Cyperaceae, commonly known as sedges. Other members of the Cyperaceae family are also called sedges, however those of genus Carex may be called "true" sedges, and it is the most species-rich genus in the family. The study of Carex is known as...
known by the common name analogue sedge.
Distribution
This sedge is native to the western United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and western Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, where it grows in many types of wet habitat, from mountain meadows to ditches, often in alkaline conditions.
Description
Carex simulata produces sharply triangular stems up to 80 centimeters tall from a long, coarse, dark brown rhizomeRhizome
In botany and dendrology, a rhizome is a characteristically horizontal stem of a plant that is usually found underground, often sending out roots and shoots from its nodes...
. The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is dense and rounded to open and long, containing several flower spikes.
The plant is generally dioecious
Plant sexuality
Plant sexuality covers the wide variety of sexual reproduction systems found across the plant kingdom. This article describes morphological aspects of sexual reproduction of plants....
, with individual plants bearing male or female flowers, but not both. The male, staminate
Stamen
The stamen is the pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower...
inflorescence is usually longer and more narrow than the oval-shaped female, pistillate
Gynoecium
Gynoecium is most commonly used as a collective term for all carpels in a flower. A carpel is the ovule and seed producing reproductive organ in flowering plants. Carpels are derived from ovule-bearing leaves which evolved to form a closed structure containing the ovules...
spike. Female flowers bear fruits which are coated in dark brown, shiny, pointed perigynia.