298 SUB-ALPINE PLANTS 



Carex claviformis Hoppe. 



Considered by some a sub-species of C. ftacca. It is usually 

 greener, larger, and more robust, with thick, knotted stolons. 

 Female spikelets loose near the base, denser and rounder at the 

 apex, which makes them almost club-shaped. Fruit often reddish. 



Damp Alpine and sub-alpine pastures and marshes, rather rare 

 except in Switzerland. May to July. 



Distribution. Switzerland, Savoy, Mt. Cenis, and elsewhere in 

 the Italian Alps, Tyrol, Carinthia, Carniola. 



Carex pallescens L. Pale Sedge. 



Stems tufted, slender, leafy at the base, about a foot high. 

 Leaves narrow and pointed. Terminal spikelet male ; female 

 spikelets 2 or rarely 3, shortly stalked, usually slightly drooping, 

 oblong, shorter than the male one and all at short distances below it. 

 Bracts leafy, with a short sheathing base. Stigmas 3. Fruits 

 obtuse, glabrous. 



Damp mountain pastures and woods ; widely spread. May, June. 



Distribution. Europe, Northern and Arctic Asia, N. America. 

 British. 



Carex sylvatica L. Wood Sedge. 



Stem 1-2 feet high, slender, tufted at the base. Leaves and 

 leaf-bracts flaccid, the latter with long sheaths. The leaves are 

 broader than in any of the previous species. Terminal spikelet 

 male, about an inch long, lower spikelets 2-4, usually all female, 

 slightly longer, loose-flowered on slender stalks and at length 

 more or less drooping. Glumes very pointed. Stigmas 3. Fruit 

 glabrous, with a long beak. 



Woods and shady ravines, widely spread. 



Distribution. Europe and Russian Asia, except extreme North. 

 British. 



Carex strigosa Hudson. 



Closely resembling C. sylvatica, but the female spikelets are 

 longer (at least 2 inches long) and more slender, and the peduncles 

 are much shorter and almost hidden in the long sheaths of the 

 bracts. Glumes lanceolate, green. Fruits tapering to a point, 

 but not in a long beak as in the last species. Stigmas 3. 



Mountain woods ; scarce but widely spread ; rare in Switzerland. 

 May, June. 



Distribution. Central and Northern Europe from France, 

 Denmark and the British Isles to the Caucasus. 



Carex capillaris L. 



A small, slender plant 3-6 inches high, with extremely slender, 

 rounded stems scarcely longer than the leaves. Terminal spikelet 



