General Landscape Uses:
Primarily recommended for natural landscapes and habitat restorations.
Ecological Restoration Notes: A somewhat weedy element of open, coastal uplands.
Availability:
Grown by enthusiasts.
Description: Medium herbaceous sedge.
Dimensions: About 2-3 feet in height; to 4 feet when in flower. Taller than broad when in flower.
Growth Rate: Fast.
Range:
Monroe County Keys north along the coasts to Volulsia and Levy counties; also reported for Georgia and Alabama but the status there is uncertain; West Indies, southern Mexico, Central America and northern South America.
Map of select IRC data from peninsular Florida.
Map of ZIP codes with habitat recommendations from the Monroe County Keys north to Martin and Charlotte counties.
Habitats: Coastal thickets.
Soils: Occasionally inundated to moist, well-drained to moderately well-drained limestone or calcareous sandy soils, with or without humusy top layer.
Nutritional Requirements: Moderate to low; it prefers soils with organic content, but will still grow reasonably well in nutrient poor soils.
Salt Water Tolerance: Moderate; tolerates brackish water or occasional inundation by salt water.
Salt Wind Tolerance: High; can tolerate moderate amounts of salt wind without significant injury.
Drought Tolerance: Moderate; generally requires moist soils, but tolerant of short periods of drought once established.
Light Requirements: Full sun to light shade.
Flower Color: Maroon-red inflorescence.
Flower Characteristics: Semi-showy inflorescence.
Flowering Season: Spring-fall.
Fruit: Inconspicuous brown achene. All year.
Horticultural Notes: Can be grown from seed.
Comments: Somewhat weedy and perhaps best approached with caution.
