← Bedfellow

Plantain-leaved Sedge

Carex plantaginea

Also known as: Seersucker Sedge

Distinctive 1-inch-wide pleated puckered evergreen leaves — far broader than typical sedges. Reddish-purple flower spikes in spring. Popular under-tree groundcover, clump-forming.

Family

Cyperaceae

Type

grass

Lifespan

perennial

Height

0.75–1 ft

Spacing

1–2 ft apart

Light

shade

Soil moisture

moist

Soil pH

alkaline

Bloom

March, April, May

Wildlife value

butterflies, mammals, songbirds

Landscape uses

border, naturalizing

Native states

AL, CT, GA, IA, IL, IN, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, NC, NH, NJ, NY, OH, PA, SC, TN, VA, VT, WI, WV