Cyperus strigosus · Cyperaceae — sedges
A close look reveals rows of tiny flowers stacked along flat golden spikelets. Together they form intricate, radiating heads.
Family: Cyperaceae — sedges
Habitat: Moist open ground and wetland margins
Height: Variable; identify the flower clusters rather than height alone
Season: Summer into fall
Look for elongated clusters with numerous narrow, flattened spikelets pointing outward. Several clusters may sit on branching stalks above long leaflike bracts. Spikelets change from green toward straw-colored as they mature.
The long flattened spikelets and radiating cluster structure support Straw-colored Flatsedge. Similar Cyperus species may require mature scales and fruits for a definitive botanical determination.
Select a photograph for a larger view. Photographs by Brian Woolman.
Search sunny wetland edges and other moist open places. Photograph both the overall arrangement of branches and an individual flattened spikelet; the two views answer different identification questions.
A spikelet is itself a small cluster of flowers. The golden head you notice from a distance is a cluster of clusters.
References: Species identification reference. Field photographs are compared with these references; they are not herbarium determinations.