Tufted Fescue Sedge

HABIT: Flowering stems 15-120 cm long; short rhizomes, forming tufts or clumps; flowering/fruiting May-June. SIMILAR SPECIES: Carex brevior is often confused with C. molesta and C. festucacea. The spikelets of C. brevior have a more clavate base than C. molesta. The perigynia of C. brevior have no or a few faint nerves on the ventral side compared to C. molesta and C. festucacea that have strong nerves on the ventral side. The achenes of C. festucacea are smaller than C. brevior; scarcely 1.5 mm long compared to 1.6 – 2 mm long for C. brevior. TOTAL RANGE: Quebec to VA, w. to the Pacific