About Carex aquatilis Wahlenb.
Carex aquatilis Wahlenb. is a species of sedge that has two common names: water sedge and leafy tussock sedge. It has a circumboreal distribution, growing across the northern regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It can be found in many types of mountainous and arctic habitats, including temperate coniferous forest, alpine meadows, tundra, and wetlands. There are several recognized varieties of this species, so it has some variation in its appearance. It produces triangular stems that grow to heights between 20 cm (8 inches) and 1.5 m (5 feet), and it generally does not form clumps the way many other sedges do. It grows from a dense network of rhizomes that creates a mat of fine roots thick enough to form sod. The rhizomes contain aerenchyma, which lets the plant survive in low-oxygen substrates such as heavy mud. The inflorescence holds a number of spikes, with one leaflike bract at its base that is longer than the inflorescence itself. The plant’s fruits are glossy achenes. While it occasionally reproduces by seed, it most often reproduces vegetatively by spreading through its rhizomes. In most years, the majority of the plant’s shoots do not produce any flowers. This perennial plant can live for 10 years or longer. As its rhizome system decomposes, it can form peat, and it is sometimes used to revegetate areas where peat has been harvested.
