livid sedge
Carex livida · Cyperaceae
livid sedge (Carex livida) is a perennial grass or grass-like plant in the Cyperaceae family. It is native to North America. USDA records it as hardy in zone 1 and warmer, down to about -62°F.
At a glance
| Type | graminoid USDA |
|---|---|
| Lifecycle | perennial USDA |
| Native status | native USDA |
| Mature height | 1 ft USDA |
| Light | full-sun USDA |
| Growth rate | moderate USDA |
| Soil pH | 5–6.5 USDA |
| Bloom | June USDA |
| Flower color | Green USDA |
| Hardiness zones | 1 and warmer USDA |
| Guild layer | ground-cover Derived |
USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.
Growing conditions
It needs full sun. Its drought tolerance is rated low. It handles periodically wet ground (USDA rates its anaerobic tolerance medium). It is recorded on soils from pH 5 to 6.5 — a broad range that spans acidic through mildly alkaline ground. Its cold limit is zone 1.
Size and growth
At maturity it reaches about 1 ft, making it a low, mat-forming plant. It grows at a moderate rate.
Bloom period
USDA records a bloom period of June. Flowers are green.
A flowering date, not a pollinator rating.
Foliage, flower and season
Summer foliage is green, fine in texture. Its flowers are not conspicuous — a plant for form and foliage. Its active growth period is summer. USDA rates its lifespan as short, so plan on replacing or resowing it rather than treating it as permanent structure.
What the site needs to provide
USDA records it across sites receiving 15 to 45 inches of annual precipitation. The low end of that band is genuinely arid, so it has a wide tolerance for dry country. It needs at least 120 frost-free days to finish its season. It roots to at least 12 inches. Fertility requirement: high.
Propagating it
Propagate it from seed and sod. Seed needs cold stratification — a period of moist chilling — before it will germinate, so sow in autumn or chill it artificially before a spring sowing. Its seed spreads at a moderate rate. It spreads vegetatively at a moderate rate.
Resilience and wildlife
Its growth form is recorded as rhizomatous.
Role in a guild
Ground cover. In a layered planting this is the lowest layer — it shades soil, holds moisture, and suppresses weeds. The layer is derived by a fixed rule from growth habit and mature height.
Tags
Related plants
Others in Carex
- thicket sedge Carex abscondita
- greenwhite sedge Carex albolutescens
- eastern narrowleaf sedge Carex amphibola
- Columbian sedge Carex aperta
Similar role and hardiness
- eightpetal mountain-avens Dryas octopetala
- red currant Ribes triste
- arctic raspberry Rubus arcticus
- arctic dock Rumex arcticus
- lingonberry Vaccinium vitis-idaea
Where this data comes from
Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol CALI, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.
- Quoted from USDA PLANTS: active growth period, Bloom, Bloom end, cold stratification, Drought tolerance, fall conspicuous, fertility requirement, Flower color, flower conspicuous, foliage color, foliage porosity winter, foliage texture, frost free days min, fruit conspicuous, growth form, Growth rate, Hardiness zones, Lifecycle, lifespan, Light, Mature height, Minimum temperature, Native status, Nitrogen fixation, precipitation max in, precipitation min in, propagation, resprout ability, root depth in, seed spread rate, Soil pH, Soil pH (upper), Tolerance of wet soil, Toxicity, Type, vegetative spread rate.
- Derived by a fixed rule from those columns: Guild layer.
Read our full data sources and methodology.
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