Fine grasses for shade & companions

Not so long ago, when collecting seeds of Viola pubescens var. scabriuscula, I noticed that on a few clumps of Carex rosea (the Rosy sedge or Curly sedge) the seeds were ready. I intended to collect seeds of it a while ago but it was never the right time. Many times you need to get down to the ground to observe the ‘finer’ things.

I love the wonderful ‘grass-like’ fine carpets the curly sedge forms in many deciduous woods. It can grow in a wide range of situations from dry to moist substrates. The ‘curly’ alludes to the fact the stigmas of the flowers are curled (good eyesight or magnifying lens required). *There are few other species included in Carex rosea group.

It was a hot day and I enjoyed the shade for a while observing the other species growing nearby & among the Rosy sedge clumps. Besides the Violas there were a couple of Uvularia grandiflora seedlings and Trillium grandiflorum, Maianthemum canadense, a woodland Galium and a Smilax youngster to the right, plus Hepatica americana. What a perfect grouping for a garden woodland micro-habitat!

Not as often cultivated as they should be, the woodland sedges and other relatives (like the woodrushes, Luzula) are among the first ‘green’ messengers present on the woodland floors after the spring snowmelt and also the last one before the snow starts falling in the winter. They can serve the same function in our gardens, complementing the few evergreens and perennials that keep their leaves green throughout the winter (Hepatica, Gaultheria, Mitchella, Helleborus, Polystichum and other ferns).

 There are many other sedges that can be grown in the shaded garden. To mention only the superfine Carex eburnea (Bristle leaf sedge), the Plantain leaf sedge (Carex plantaginea) and another favourite of mine: Carex pensylvanica, Pennsylvania sedge.
We just need more seeds & more nurseries to grow them.  Some species can be purchased on occasion; when it happens do not miss the chance. In any case, they are in the ‘very easy to grow from seeds’ category.

This fall you will also find on the Seeds List another favorite grass of mine for shade/to part shade locations: Melica uniflora (syn. M. nutans), the Woodland Melic grass.
I had to grow it from seeds, since I’ve never seen it offered around here: easy to grow and clumps up fast in a part-shade, well drained location. The fine textured foliage comes with the added bonus of the gracious spikelets fluttering in the early summer breeze.

The third fine grass for shade, already offered last year: Patis racemosa (Blackseed rice grass) also deserves a mention. I still have to grow this one for the garden especially that the wild population is quite small and just few seeds can be collected. We don’t have many ‘bamboo-looking’ native grasses.

All these species are forming rhizomes, but are not the aggressive type; just enough so we can split them once in a while and replant the divisions or share them with the lucky friends.