Carex livida (Wahl) Willd.

  • Authority

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

  • Family

    Cyperaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Carex livida (Wahl) Willd.

  • Description

    Species Description - Glaucous; stems 2–5 dm, in small tufts from long rhizomes; lvs 1–3 mm wide, channeled or involute, often equaling or surpassing the stems; terminal spike staminate, rarely pistillate at the tip, 1–2 cm; lateral spikes 1–3, pistillate, 1–2 cm, sessile or short-peduncled, contiguous or shortly overlapping or only shortly separate near the summit of the stem, or the lowest one rarely on an elongate basal peduncle; bracts with short sheath and narrow blade usually surpassing the spike, pistillate scales ovate, shorter and distally narrower than the perigynia, with purplish sides and green center, obtuse to acute or mucronate; perigynia glaucous-green, fusiform, 3–5 mm, ribbed on the lateral angles, finely and obscurely nerved, beakless; achene broadly ovoid-trigonous, filling the perigynium; 2n=32. Wet soil; circumboreal, s. to N.J. and Minn. (C. grayana)