I can be as guily as some others by not always paying more attention to the grasses, sedges and rushes that surround us, but you surely could not miss this one!
Down by the river last weekend I came across clumps of these tall and droopy sedges growing on the banks. They can grow up to a height of 1.5m ( 5ft) and are evergreen. The male flowers spikelets grow up to 10cm (4in) long from the tip of the plant, whilst the female spikelets which are pendulous and look similar to catkins grow up to 16cm (6in) long. It flowers May to June.
Sometimes grown in gardens because of its distinctive and attractive appearance, it is a native perennial which is usually found in damp deciduous woodland, or near shaded streams or rivers. It is commoner in the south of England.
May 2018, river bank, Staffordshire, England. © Pete Hillman. Sigma 18-300mm lens.
Nature Journeys 
Wow! This is amazing!
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Thank you, Himanshi 🙂
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As soon as I saw this I told Nigel about it because it looked like some huge plants that were at our last rental property in Dunedin, NZ. Sure enough he agreed its the plant, and looked it up online – its banned here in NZ! (Already-existing plants on private property are allowed though.) They looked interesting initially – but they had tons of flowers/catkins that drooped all over the lawn when they got older and were a real pain to get tidied up when we left the rental. Its a problem here because of its large size and prolific seeding.
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When I was doing some research earlier I noticed you had it in NZ, too. Trouble with invasive species they can cause all kinds of problems, and even push out native species.
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Yes, that’s the problem. Fortunately it doesn’t seem to be widespread here, mostly seems to be a problem along one particular river in Christchurch. It was great to find out what it is though, via your photo!
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🙂
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Nice images of something so easy to pass by unnoticed, Pete.
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Thank you, Ellen 🙂
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You can buy this from nurseries at £6+ a pot – I must have thrown away hundreds of pounds worth! It grows like a weed in my garden and boy is it hard to dig out once established.
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Northern marshes in the US, New England, have virtually no native reeds. They have all been over run by larger plants that can also withstand the cold. When I walked the northern marshes I has always assumed these tall species were the norm.
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I love grasses and will be planting many in my developing garden. Easy to manage I love their movement in breezes and changing tones as autumn heads towards us.
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I think grasses can so be overlooked sometimes as flowers tend to draw our attention more. But there are many beautiful and interesting grasses out there. I can imagine how beautiful your garden will be with those grasses you will be planting 🙂
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