Pennsylvania sedge likes dry, shady areas
Editor’s note: Once a month, OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteers in Franklin County profile a plant that occurs naturally in Central Ohio.
Do you have a shady area in your yard under a tree where it’s difficult to grow anything? Carex pensylvanica (Pennsylvania sedge) may be the answer. This hardy native of eastern United States and Canada tolerates heavy shade and prefers dry soil, but will tolerate moderately moist conditions.
It is semi-evergreen, dying in only very cold temperatures. It has yearround interest. In April to May, it sends up little burgundy shoots that erupt with delicate, tiny, white-yellow wispy flowers. In summer, it’s a bright medium green small clump about 8 inches tall.
In autumn, its green leaves are sprinkled with golden-brown, and in late winter, it often turns light brown before new growth appears. Carex does well as a ground cover under the shady canopy of a large tree, or with dappled sunshine. It is also beautiful in mass plantings or as a border plant with taller perennials behind it.
A low sedge, Carex has soft, delicate, arching, semi-evergreen leaves. The leaves are narrow, grass-like and medium green. This plant is monoecious, with spikelets of male flowers blooming above female flowers on the same stalk.
Female flowers are followed by tiny fruits enclosed in sac-like bracts.
Carex is low-maintenance; gardeners may trim leaves in early spring, if removing last year’s growth is desirable. Propagation is best by division. Carex spreads by rhizomes.
It may self-seed in ideal conditions. Height and spread are both 6-12 inches. It has no serious insect or disease problems, but leaf spot, smut and rust can affect it.
Native to thickets and dry woodland areas, Carex grows in loose colonies with a creeping habit. It’s often found under oak trees, hence the common name “oak sedge.” It is a host plant for various Satyr larvae and attracts butterflies, pollinators and songbirds.