Rushes and sedges are grass-like plants that often grow in or adjacent the seasonally wetter areas in coastal grasslands. Adapted from: Budd’s Flora of the Canadian Prairie Provinces, Looman and Best, 1979. Sedges have edges, and rushes are round, But grasses have nodes from their tips to the ground. "Sedges have edges. Juncus … Sedge ID Terminology •Inflorescences (flowers): •Panicle: multi-branched inflorescence •Spikelet: small spike with reduced What have you found?" Most often they are perennials. Common name of sedge comes from the Latin word for sedge (secafre) meaning to cut in reference to the sharp leaf edges. Most sedges have triangular stems ("edges"), except for Scripus, which has round stems. The amateur would probably call all of these grasses, but in fact some are sedges and some are rushes. Grasses. SPECIES: GRASSES, RUSHES, AND SEDGES . It all started with a blizzard that pushed us right into excessive heat of summer before May was out. Sedges tend to grow in damp ground, often bordering swamps and streams. This common rhyme can help you remember the key differences between the Sedge, Rush, and Grass families. Rushes • Sedges: Solid, triangular stems (“sedges have edges”) with some exceptions; leaves 3-ranked; fruit a nutlet subtended by a scale • Grasses: Hollow (between the nodes), round stems; leaves 2- ranked; fruit a grain covered by two papery scales Grasses are hollow. Rushes are round. Ever heard the ditty “sedges have edges and rushes are round”? A COMPARISON OF GRASSES, SEDGES, AND RUSHES . Grasses, Sedges and Rushes all belong to the same plant family, that of Flowering plants (Angiosperms) and so are frequently confused with each other as they often have very similar characteristics. The “edges” are there because of the way the leaves meet each other along their edges, while the “round” rushes usually have one leaf sheathing the stem. Rushes are evergreen, with a texture similar to a grass. Carex laxiculmis leaf blade: About a quarter of the plants that one encounters at Acadia National Park appear "grass-like." Rushes are round. Sedges vs. Grasses vs. This simple but effective poem may help you to distinguish sedge from a rush from a grass: “Sedges have edges and rushes are round, grasses are hollow and rush all around.” Another version goes like this, “Sedges have edges, rushes are round, grasses have nodes and willows abound.” Personally I … While many members of the grass, sedge and rush families provide abundant planting choices, don’t forget to … We hadn't had more than a few hours rain over the month, so little that, with the heat, high sun, and drying wind, even succulents were bowing to the ground. Grasses are usually dominant in coastal prairies and grasslands. Here is a little rhyme to help tell the three apart: "sedges have edges, rushes are round, and grasses have joints." Sedges have edges, rushes are round, grasses have knees that bend to the ground. 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