| Stiff-leaf sedge | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Cyperus vaginatus flowers | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Clade: | Commelinids |
| Order: | Poales |
| Family: | Cyperaceae |
| Genus: | Cyperus |
| Species: | C. vaginatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Cyperus vaginatus | |
Cyperus vaginatus, commonly known as stiff-leaf sedge or stiff flat-sedge, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia. [1]
The rhizomatous perennial herb grass-like sedge typically grows to a height of 0.3 to 2 metres (1.0 to 6.6 ft) and has a tufted habit. It blooms between November and February producing green-brown flowers. [1] The culms are rigid with a terete arrangement. The culms grow to around 1 metre (3.3 ft) in height and have a diameter of about 3 millimetres (0.12 in). The leaves are just sheaths. The simple or compound inflorescence has four to twelve primary branches up to a length of approximately 6 centimetres (2.4 in) but usually shorter. [2] The spikelets are flattened with between four and fifteen in each cluster each are 5 to 18 mm (0.20 to 0.71 in) long and 2 to 2.8 mm (0.08 to 0.11 in) in width. [3] Following flowering, a grey-brown trigonous nut with an obovoid to ellipsoid shape will form. The nut is around 0.6 to 0.8 mm (0.024 to 0.031 in) in length with a diameter of about 0.5 mm (0.020 in). [2]
The species was first formally described by the botanist Robert Brown in the work Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen that was published in 1810. The samples were collected in 1802 during an expedition by HMS Investigator and Géographe to map the South Australian coastline. [4]
The species name vaginatus is taken from the Latin word, vagina, meaning sheath. [5]
The plant is found in subtropical regions extending into tropical areas in the northern end of its range. [6] In Western Australia, it is found along creeks and streams in the Kimberley, Pilbara, Gascoyne, Mid West and Goldfields-Esperance regions where it grows in sandy-clay alluvium often around limestone. [1] The species is also found in north western and south eastern South Australia, [7] Victoria, [3] Queensland, the Northern Territory and New South Wales. [2] It will grow well in full sun to part shade in well-drained soils but can need watering in summer when cultivated. [8]
In Victoria, the species was once found in the Grampians and around Swan Hill but no specimens have been collected in 1913 and it is now possibly extinct in these areas. [3]
Cyperus vaginatus can be harvested from the wild as a source of fibre. The fibre is taken from the outer parts of the stems and is traditionally used by Indigenous Australians to make nets and cordage. [6]
The species is known to attract butterflies. [9]
Machaerina juncea, commonly known as bare twig-rush or tussock swamp twig rush, is a sedge in the sedge family, Cyperaceae, that is native to Australia, New Zealand, and New Caledonia.
Carex inversa, commonly known as knob sedge, is a species of sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to parts of Australia and New Zealand and has also been introduced into Great Britain.
Cyperus alopecuroides, commonly known as the foxtail flatsedge, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to parts of Africa, Asia and Australia.
Cyperus alterniflorus is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia.
Cyperus betchei is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia.
Cyperus compressus, commonly known as annual sedge, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that has a wide distribution throughout countries with warmer climates. It is found in tropical areas of Africa, Asia and the Americas.
Cyperus concinnus is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia, and found in New South Wales, Queensland, the Northern Territory, South Australia, Victoria and Western Australia.
Cyperus congestus, commonly known as dense flat-sedge or clustered flat-sedge, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to southern Africa mostly in South Africa, Lesotho and Namibia.
Cyperus cuspidatus, commonly known as the coastal plain flatsedge, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to seasonally dry tropical areas of Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia.
Cyperus dactylotes is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to all of mainland Australia except for Victoria.
Cyperus digitatus, also known as finger flatsedge in the United States, and chang xiao sui suo cao in China, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to tropical and subtropical areas of Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia.
Cyperus flaccidus is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia.
Cyperus gilesii, commonly known as Giles' flat-sedge, is a sedge of the Cyperaceae that is native to Australia.
Cyperus nutans is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia, China, India, Bangladesh, south-east Asia, Malaysia, India, and Indonesia.
Cyperus pygmaeus, also known as dwarf flat sedge, is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia.
Cyperus rigidellus is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to Australia.
Cyperus victoriensis, also known as channel nut grass is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to all the states and territories of mainland Australia.
Cyperus viscidulus is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae that is native to north western Australia.
Cyperus vorsteri is a sedge of the family Cyperaceae native to KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa.
Carpha alpina, commonly known as small flower-rush, is a tufted perennial sedge from the family Cyperaceae. It is found primarily in south-east Australia and both islands of New Zealand, but also in Papua New Guinea.