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Carex crawei — Crawe's sedge

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Facts

Crawe's sedge is very rare in New England, being found only in western Connecticut and northern Maine. It becomes more common around the shores of the Great Lakes and farther west. Typical habitats have high-pH bedrock, and include wet cliffs, seeps, river and lake shores, and meadows.

Habitat

Anthropogenic (man-made or disturbed habitats), cliffs, balds, or ledges, meadows and fields, shores of rivers or lakes, swamps

New England distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

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North America distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

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Characteristics

Habitat
  • terrestrial
  • wetlands
New England state
  • Connecticut
  • Maine
stem leaf blade width
1.5–4.4 mm
Lowest bract sheath
the lowest bract has no sheath (or a very short sheath up to four millimeters in length)
Spike on stalk
the lowest spike on the plant has a peduncle
Top spike
the uppermost spike contains only staminate flowers
Perigynium hairs
the perigynium has no hairs
Perigynium length
2.2–3.7 mm
Leaf sheath color
the leaf sheath has no pink, red or purple tinting
Leaf blade texture
the leaf blade is smooth and hairless, or rough and sandpapery
Perigynium beak teeth
the perigynium beak is not divided at the tip into two teeth, or the teeth are very tiny
Show all characteristics

  • Flowers

    Anther length
    1.9–2.9 mm
    Bumps on fruit
    there are no papillae on the perigynium surface
    Length of scale
    the scale is shorter than the perigynium
    Lowest spike length
    5–27 mm
    Lowest spike width
    3.1–6.3 mm
    Perigynium beak
    the perigynium has a beak
    Perigynium beak length
    0.1–0.3 mm
    Perigynium beak orientation
    the beak of the perigynium is straight, and in line with the perigynium
    Perigynium beak serrations
    the perigynium beak has no serrations
    Perigynium beak teeth
    the perigynium beak is not divided at the tip into two teeth, or the teeth are very tiny
    Perigynium beak teeth length
    Up to 0.1 mm
    Perigynium color
    • green
    • tan
    • yellow
    Perigynium cross-section
    • the perigynium is relatively round in cross-section
    • the perigynium is trigonous (triangular) in cross-section
    Perigynium hairs
    the perigynium has no hairs
    Perigynium length
    2.2–3.7 mm
    Perigynium nerve texture
    the nerves on the perigynium are raised, even after drying the perigynium
    Perigynium orientation
    • the perigynia are angled outwards
    • the perigynia are oriented vertically or pressed against the axis or adjacent perigynia
    Perigynium puffy
    the perigynium is inflated (there is space between the perigynium and the achene)
    Perigynium shape
    • the perigynium body is elliptic (widest near the middle and tapering at both ends)
    • the perigynium body is oblong (rectangular but with rounded ends)
    • the perigynium body is ovate (egg-shaped)
    Perigynium width
    1.1–1.9 mm
    Perigynium winged
    the perigynium has no wings
    Pollen- and seed-producing spikes
    some of the spikes produce perigynia
    Pollen-producing spike length
    5–24 mm
    Pollen-producing spike number
    1
    Pollen-producing spike peduncle length
    4–91 mm
    Scale awn
    The carpellate scale does not have an awn (it may have a short point)
    Scale awn texture
    NA
    Scale color
    • green
    • red-brown
    Scale length
    1.2–2.9 mm
    Scale tip
    • the carpellate scale tip is acuminate (tapered to a narrow point)
    • the carpellate scale tip is acute (has a sharp point)
    Spike on stalk
    the lowest spike on the plant has a peduncle
    Spike orientation
    the spikes are oriented vertically or pressed against the axis
    Spikes per stem
    2-15
    Staminate scale tip
    • the staminate scale tip is obtuse (has a blunt point)
    • the staminate scale tip is rounded to retuse (blunt or rounded, with a notch at the tip)
    Stigma branching
    the stigmas have three branches
    Top spike
    the uppermost spike contains only staminate flowers

  • Fruits or seeds

    Achene dimples
    the achene has no folds or dimples
    Achene length
    1.4–1.9 mm
    Achene width
    1–1.8 mm
    Style persistence
    the style falls off the mature achenes

  • Growth form

    Rhizomes
    there are long rhizomes present

  • Leaves

    Leaf arrangement
    the leaves are all produced from the base of the plant
    Leaf blade cross-section
    the leaf blade is flat or M-shaped, with two prominent side-veins
    Leaf blade length to width ratio
    4–22
    Leaf blade texture
    the leaf blade is smooth and hairless, or rough and sandpapery
    Leaf bumps
    the upper surface of the leaf blade does not have papillae
    Leaf sheath bumps
    there are no papillae at the top edge of the leaf sheath
    Leaf sheath color
    the leaf sheath has no pink, red or purple tinting
    Leaf sheath dots
    there are no dots on the leaf sheathes
    Leaf sheath folds
    there are no corrugations on the leaf sheath
    Leaf sheath texture
    the leaf sheath feels smooth, and has no hairs
    Lowest bract sheath
    the lowest bract has no sheath (or a very short sheath up to four millimeters in length)
    Lowest leaf blade width
    1.5–4.4 mm
    Lowest leaf sheath texture
    the leaf sheath feels smooth (it may have soft hairs)
    stem leaf blade width
    1.5–4.4 mm

  • Place

    Habitat
    • terrestrial
    • wetlands
    New England state
    • Connecticut
    • Maine
    Specific habitat
    • cliffs, balds, or ledges
    • man-made or disturbed habitats
    • meadows or fields
    • shores of rivers or lakes
    • swamps

  • Stem, shoot, branch

    Plant height
    2–40 cm
    Relative stem height
    • the main stem is equal to or shorter than the leaves
    • the main stem is taller than the leaves
    Stem cross-section
    the main stem is roughly triangular in cross-section
    Stem spacing
    the stems grow singly or a few together (they may form diffuse colonies)

Wetland status

Usually occurs in wetlands, but occasionally in non-wetlands. (Wetland indicator code: FACW)

In New England

Distribution

Connecticut
present
Maine
present
Massachusetts
absent
New Hampshire
absent
Rhode Island
absent
Vermont
absent

Conservation status

Exact status definitions can vary from state to state. For details, please check with your state.

Connecticut
extremely rare (S-rank: S1), threatened (code: T)
Maine
extirpated (S-rank: SX), potentially extirpated (code: PE)

From Flora Novae Angliae dichotomous key

75.  Carex crawei Dewey NC

Crawe’s sedge. CT, ME. Gravel and ledgy river shores, lake shores, meadows, wet cliffs, seeps, and open rights-of-way in high-pH bedrock regions. Specimens from New England show some variation in morphology. In particular, those from CT often have a scabrous staminate spike peduncle, whereas those from ME have a smooth staminate peduncle.

Native to North America?

Yes

Sometimes confused with

Carex granularis:
staminate spike on a peduncle 1–35 mm long, shorter than to barely exceeding the uppermost carpellate spike, and stems cespitose on short, inconspicuous rhizomes (vs. C. crawei, with the staminate spike on a peduncle mostly 9–76 mm long, overtopping the uppermost carpellate spike, and stems produced singly or a few together from elongate rhizomes).

Family

Cyperaceae

Genus

Carex