About Carex rossii Boott
Carex rossii Boott, the sedge species described here, grows a dense clump or solid mat of slender stems from a shallow network of rhizomes. Stems reach a maximum height of about 40 centimeters (16 inches). Its leaves range from pale to dark green, and are usually longer than the stems it produces. Its inflorescences hold one or more staminate flower spikes positioned above more rounded pistillate spikes. The fruit of this species is three-sided, and covered in a greenish or brownish perigynium.
Carex rossii is native to a large range across North America. It is sometimes abundant throughout Alaska, subarctic Canada (including Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, and Yukon Territory), western Canada (including Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan), and the contiguous United States (including Arizona, California, Colorado, the Dakotas, Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming). It occurs only sporadically in Ontario, Michigan, and Nebraska. It can grow in a wide variety of habitat types, including both wet and dry areas in forest, sagebrush, prairie, and alpine meadow environments.
