Carex (athrostachya)
|
Mark E. Majerus USDA NRCS - Bridger Plant Materials Center 99 South River Road, Rte. 2, Box 1189 Bridger, Montana 59014-9718 (406) 662-3579 (406) 662-3428 (fax) mmajerus@mt.nrcs.usda.gov http://plant-materials.nrcs.usda.gov/mtpmc |
|
| Family Scientific Name: | Cyperaceae | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Family Common Name: | Sedge Family | ||
| Scientific Name: | Carex athrostachya Olney | ||
| Common Name: | Slenderbeak sedge | ||
| Species Code: | CARATH | ||
| Ecotype: | Glacier National Park, Camas area | ||
| Propagation Goal: | plants | ||
| Propagation Method: | seed | ||
| ProductType: | Container (plug) | ||
| Time To Grow: | 0 | ||
| Propagule Processing: | Harvested seed heads are spread on a tarp in a warm dry location to ripen. The majority of the filled, ripe seed will shatter or easily shake out of the seed head. Although processing of intact seed in a hammermill does not result in significant increases of clean seed or improved germination percentages, the additional effort may be warranted for intensively managed production such as this. Finish cleaning seed over a fanning mill with moderate wind to separate light seed and chaff. | ||
| Pre-Planting Treatments: | Sow seeds onto a fine textured commercial peat-lite mix with high water holding capacity. Sow several seeds into each container, a 10-cubic-inch conetainer is adequate for 1-0 production. Moisten the seeds and media thoroughly and allow them to imbibe water overnight in a warm location. Move the containers to a 34 to 37øF cooler for a cold moist chilling. In one project, cold moist chilling of fresh seed for 75 days resulted in relatively high germination, although measurements were not taken. It is assumed that cold moist chilling of 60 to 90 days is adequate for fresh seed. | ||
| Growing Area Preparation/ Annual Practices for Perennial Crops: |
Grow the seedlings in a greenhouse maintained at 75 to 80øF days and 65 to 70øF nights. | ||
| Hardening Phase: | Plants moved to an outdoor hoophouse in 10-cubic-inch conetainers in early October hardened off and overwintered very well. | ||
| Length of Hardening Phase: | Although we normally prefer 60 days of hardening off prior to outplanting or overwintering, this species became acclimated to ambient conditions in less than 30 days in an outdoor hoophouse. | ||
| Length of Storage: | No experience although this species overwintered well in 10-cubic-inch conetainers as previously described. | ||
| Other Comments: | Easy to grow from seed, one of the better Carex we've worked with for seed production based on plant stature, habit, ease of propagation, and seed production. | ||
Citation:
Scianna, Joe. 2003. Propagation protocol for production of Container (plug) Carex athrostachya Olney plants USDA NRCS - Bridger Plant Materials Center Bridger, Montana. In: Native Plant Network. URL: https://NativePlantNetwork.org (accessed 2025/04/24). US Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Center for Reforestation, Nurseries, and Genetic Resources.
