FIELD ID CHARACTERISTICS:
Flowering stems long and leaning with the weight of seedheads. Spikelets 3 to 5 mm long. Bristles on seeds extend about 0.5 mm beyond length of seed body. Godfrey and Wooten (1979) drawings are helpful.
Synonym(s): Rhynchospora patula
Description: A tall, drooping sedge, to 1 m, with large clusters of rounded seeds spaced along flowering stems.
Leaves: Linear, grass-like leaves in basal arrangement; flowering stems longer than leaves.
Flowers/Fruit: Inflorescences spaced along flowering stem and bunched with rounded seeds. Flowers and fruits June through September.
Habit and Range: Open marshes, swamps, pine wetlands, impoundment shores. Found in the central and southern Piedmont and the Coastal Plain, very rare in the Mountains.
COMMON CONFUSIONS:
Rhynchospora caduca (angle-stem beaksedge) is easily confused with the uncommon R. odorata (fragrant beaksedge) which is generally only found in the Outer Banks and has longer spikelets.
Link to side-by-side comparisons page
