Soft-Leaved Sedge (Carex montana)
KARE-ex mon-TAN-ah

Deciduous Perennial Clump-Forming, Slow-Spreading in the Cyperaceae Family
 
Buy Soft-Leaved Sedge
Size Notes Price Availability
Tray of 6 #1 gallons Field $74.40 Likely available
11/1 - 11/8
1/24 - 4/4

A fine-textured European meadow sedge forming neat, soft-leaved tufts that turn warm bronze-orange in autumn.
Carex montana (Soft-Leaved Sedge, also called Mountain Sedge) is a clump-forming sedge native to the meadows, open woodlands, and calcareous grasslands of Europe and western Asia. Its fine, soft, arching leaves emerge bright apple-green in spring and often turn orange-bronze by autumn. In spring it produces inconspicuous dark brown flower spikes with yellow pollen on wiry stems, followed by seed. Found naturally in short grasslands and open, well-drained sites, it tolerates full sun to partial shade and prefers average to dry, well-drained soil, making it a hardy, low-maintenance choice for rock gardens, meadow plantings, and fine-textured groundcover.

Pros

  • Fine, soft-textured foliage that colors bronze-orange in autumn
  • Clump-forming and well-behaved rather than aggressively spreading
  • Tolerates full sun to partial shade and dry, well-drained soil
  • Extremely cold hardy and low-maintenance once established

Cons

  • Inconspicuous flowers offer little color
  • Slow to mature, taking a year or two to fill in
  • Not native to North America, unlike most other Carex in this collection
Why Like Carex montana is a long-lived indicator of rich, undisturbed grassland and ancient woodland in its native Europe, where it contributes fine-textured structure to meadow and woodland-edge plant communities on well-drained soils.
Highlights
  • Neat, fine-textured tufts with attractive bronze-orange fall color
  • Well-suited to rock gardens, meadow plantings, and short-grass groundcover
  • Thrives in average to dry, well-drained soil in sun or partial shade
 

Plant Data

Mature Size 6 - 16 inches tall. 8 - 16 inches wide.
Growth Rate Medium
Sun Exposure Partial Shade - Full Sun
Moisture Tolerance Dry - Medium
Zones 4a - 8b (Usually hardy to -30° F)
Tags Deciduous, Deer Resistant, Drought Tolerant, Dry, Full Sun, Good for Rock Garden, Grasses, Medium, Partial Shade, Partial Sun, Perennial, Rabbit Resistant
Bloom Period April - June
Flower Color Green, maturing to Dark Brown
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Pricing and Availability History

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Past Availability
2024 : 09/05 - 09/08
2023 : 08/02 - 09/10

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Field-Grown vs. Greenhouse-Grown Plants

Plants which are well-adapted to our local climate are most often field-grown (outside). Field-grown plants are generally cheaper and have the advantage of already somewhat acclimated to our cold winters, but that means they’re not artificially far along in the spring and tend to bloom at the normal time in our area.

Spring annuals and tender perennials are typically grown in Greenhouses so they can be ready and luxurious exactly when customers want them. Some perennials are also “forced” into early bloom in greenhouses. In May, there can be a very big difference between field-grown and greenhouse-grown plants of the same type. The latter typically look good right away (so they’re a great choice where that’s important), but we typically pay a premium for it.


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No Pricing or Availability Right Now

We order from a rotating cast of the best nurseries in the Great Lakes region. It looks like we've offered this plant in the past, but the nurseries we're working with this week don't appear to have it in stock at the moment.

Our goal is to bring as many plants together under "one roof" as possible, so we'll try hard to make it available again in the future!