Carex garberi Fernald
Garber's sedge (elk sedge)
Cyperaceae (Sedge family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
Garber's sedge (elk sedge)
Cyperaceae (Sedge family)
Introduction to Vascular Plants
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Species Information
General:
Perennial, loosely tufted herb from long rhizomes; stems 5-60 cm tall, longer than the leaves.
Leaves:
Sheaths tight; blades 3 to 6 per stem, flat, borne on the lower 1/3 of the stem, 2-4 mm wide, the lower ones reduced.
Flowers:
Spikes 3 to 5, 4-10 mm long, the terminal spike entirely with male flowers or with a few female flowers at the the top, the lateral spikes 2 to 4, with female flowers, short-stalked; bracts subtending the female spikes short-sheathing, leaflike, the lowermost equalling or slightly surpassing the inflorescence.
Fruits:
Perigynia globe-shaped, 2-3 mm wide, inflated, bluish-grey-green, obscurely nerved, with a powdery surface, beakless; female scales egg-shaped and pointed to rounded at the tips, slightly shorter and narrower than the perigynia, reddish-brown, with greenish midribs and translucent margins; stigmas 2; achenes lens-shaped, 1.2-1.5 mm long.
Notes:
Two subspecies (sometimes treated as separate species) can be distinguished:
1. Terminal spike usually with female flowers above the male flowers with at least 1/4 of the flowers female and the male portion 1.2-2.7 mm wide; lateral spikes on average with less than 20 flowers................. ssp. garberi
1. Terminal spike male, rarely with a few female flowers at the tip, 1.8-3 mm wide; lateral spikes on average with 20 or more flowers...................... ssp. bifaria (Fern.) Hult.
Ecology
Ecological Framework for Carex garberi
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)
| Site Information |
Value / Class |
||
|
Avg |
Min |
Max |
|
| Elevation
(metres) |
1342 | 920 | 1600 |
| Slope
Gradient (%) |
0 | 0 | 3 |
|
Aspect (degrees) |
180 | 180 | 180 |
| Soil
Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric] |
6 | 5 | 7 |
| Modal
Nutrient Regime
Class |
D | ||
| #
of field plots species was recorded in: |
6 | ||
| Modal
BEC Zone Class |
ESSF | ||
|
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in |
ESSF(3), MS(2), SBS(1) | ||
|
Source:
Klinkenberg 2013
|
|||
Habitat and Range
Wet meadows, shorelines and seepage sites in the lowland, steppe and montane zones; infrequent on Vancouver Island (ssp. bifaria), frequent E of the Coast-Cascade Mountains (ssp. garberi); N to AK, YT, and NT, E to PQ, NB and NS, and S to ME, NH, PA, OH, IN, IL, MN, ND, MT and CA.Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Carex garberi subsp. bifaria (Fernald) Hultén
Carex garberi var. bifaria Fernald