Carex caroliniana

Culms 25-80 cm, glabrescent. Leaves: sheaths pilose; ligules as long as or shorter than wide; blades 1.5-4 mm wide, glabrescent or pilose abaxially and/or proximally. Inflorescences: lateral spikes usually approximate, 7-18 × 3.5-5 mm; terminal spike gynecandrous, at least 1/2 of flowers pistillate, 12-25 mm. Pistillate scales ovate, 1.5-2.4(-3) × 0.7-1.5 mm, shorter than perigynia, apex acute to acuminate. Staminate scales oblong-ovate, 2.4-5.1 mm, apex acuminate. Anthers 1.4-2.5 mm. Perigynia spreading, 7-14-veined, obovate-circular, nearly circular in cross section, 2.1-3 × 1.1-2 mm, not papillose, glabrous or sparsely pilose; beak absent. Achenes 1.6-2.2 × 1-1.4 mm. 2n = 48.

Fruiting late spring-early summer. Ditches, shores; 0-500 m; Ark., Del., D.C., Ga., Ind., Kans., Md., Miss., Mo., N.J., N.C., Ohio, Okla., Pa., Tenn., Tex., Va., W.Va.

Tufted, 3-8 dm, tinged with red-purple at base; lf-sheaths glabrous or hairy on the back, glabrous or nearly so ventrally; blades elongate, 2-4 mm wide, glabrous except at base; spikes usually 3, ±approximate, short-cylindric or narrowly ovoid, 1-2 cm, densely fld, the terminal one pistillate above, the others wholly pistillate; pistillate scales ovate, usually much shorter than the perigynia, brown-tinged, acute or short-cuspidate; perigynia obovoid, 2.2-2.8 mm, two-thirds as wide and nearly as thick as wide, turgid, spreading, strongly nerved, minutely beaked; achene concavely trigonous, bent-apiculate. Dry woods and meadows; N.J. and Pa. to O., Mo., and Okla., s. to N.C. and Tex.

Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.

©The New York Botanical Garden. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

From Flora of Indiana (1940) by Charles C. Deam

Frequent in southern Indiana in low flat woods and in clay soil in fallow fields.

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Indiana Coefficient of Conservatism: C = 7

Wetland Indicator Status: FACW