Plant Name: Carex species: There are more than 1,500 species of these perennials.
Common name: Sedges
Plant Type: Deciduous or Evergreen Perennials
Plant Height: 12” – 4’
Plant Width: 10” – 12”
Bloom Time: Varies
Flower Color: Stems & Panicles of flower heads in short spikes. Provides Interesting Foliage and Movement.
Exposure: Part Shade to Full Shade, some varieties will take Full Sun, (check specific plant’s preference)
Soil Requirements: Carex grow in soils ranging from 5.5 to 7.5 on the pH scale. Most average garden soils fall between a pH range of 6.0 to 7.0.
Water Needs: Some like Wetter Sites, Some Drier Conditions. Check variety for water needs.
Fire Resistant: YES; Zone 1 – 8; Plant 30’+ from house
Attributes: Deer Resistant, Provides 3- seasons of Interest, Easy to grow, Low maintenance; Wide Range of Colorful Grass-like Foliage; Adds Drama to a Landscape, Adds Texture, Host plants for butterflies and skippers. Beneficial to pollinators by providing cover in the winter. Excellent seed source for birds. Provides Texture and Movement in a landscape.
Uses: Carex species to suit just about any situation. Mass plantings, Ground Cover, Container Plantings, Rockery gardens, Lining Sidewalks, Edging Flowerbeds, and more.
Note: May be Susceptible to Rust, Smut, Leaf Spot, Aphids.
Native to: Found Worldwide
Oregon Native: NO
USDA Hardiness Zone: 4 – 9, check variety for hardiness in your zone.
Carex buchananaii
Carex glauca
Carex morrowii (variegated)
Carex Albula
Report by: Viki Ashford, and Carlotta Lucas, both AGC Board Members
Photos by Monrovia Nursery: https://www.monrovia.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=carex
Madia elegans: Elegant tar weed. This is blooming right now. It is a sun-loving native annual that self-sows widely. Drought and deer tolerant. Blooms morning and evening, but closes up during the middle of the day. See the bumble bee getting pollen off the flowers. The plant is about 3′ high and 1 1/2′ high.
Madia elegans: Elegant tar weed
Epilobium canum, or California Fuchsia. It used to be called Zauschneria californica. It is a later blooming perennial. It is drought and deer resistant. This one is right near an alley and a driveway, and is fine with hot, dry soil. Hummingbirds love it. I plant it with dark blue Bachelors’ Buttons, annuals which seed around.
Epilobium canum: California Fuchsia
Gaillardia , or Blanket Flower. It is a long-blooming perennial with interesting round seed heads. If some of the seed heads are left on, it will self-sow. This particular plant is probably a hybrid, called Gaillardia x grandlora ‘Goblin’, which is a more compact cultivar. The native is Gaillardiaaristata. It is drought tolerant and deer resistant.
Gaillardia: Blanket Flower
Praying Mantis on Verbena, previously seen eating a bee from the head down. After crawling up on this bloom, she crawled down on the stem and basically disappeared, lurking until another insect came along.
Praying Mantis on Verbena
Photos and article by Sherri Morgan, AGC Vice President
Few insects can digest the pollen of squash plants. But where squash plants go, squash bees have followed. Now, they’ve made it from Mexico and the Inter-mountains West all the way to Oregon. Learn about the journey of these special bees and their kinship to this family of plants.
: Armeria maritima
