Extreme Heights for Carex cumulata Seed Collection

During the week of July 12, 2010, with the assistance of New England Wild Flower Society Seed Ecologist Tristram Seidler, members of the Society’s Conservation Department and Plant Conservation Volunteer (PCV) Tim Grover collected seeds of clustered sedge (Carex cumulata) from extreme heights in the mountains of New Hampshire. Clustered sedge only occurs in dry, sandy soils in crags of large granite outcrops and is listed as threatened in the state of New Hampshire. There have been approximately 10 documented, natural occurrences of this plant in New Hampshire in the last 20 years.

Characteristics of this unique species include stiff, ventrally green-veined sheaths that reach the apex of each spike and densely aggregated oval to round fruiting clusters. The seeds of clustered sedge are located inside an opaque, orbicular skin called a perigynium. Typically seeds are ripe when the skin can be easily removed from the seed head cluster and are a light tan or brown. With the aid of hand lenses, staff and our PCV examined the uniquely shaped achenes, determined ripeness, diligently counted each fruiting stem and with extreme care removed most often just one seed head from each plant in an effort to preserve the genetic diversity of this rare species. To obtain a genetically complete sample of occurrence, seed is collected from as many individual plants as possible, with no more than ten percent collected from any one plant.  

On a seasonal basis, seeds are collected by the Society for purposes of habitat restoration, research, education and preservation in case of a catastrophic event. Seeds will be preserved and stored at the seed bank at Nasami Farm’s Native Plant Center, which, thanks to a grant from the National Science Foundation, has been stocked with all the equipment necessary to separate, clean, store and preserve each seed for future use.   

If you are an avid botanist and outdoor enthusiast and would like to search for and participate in plant conservation efforts through New England Wild Flower Society’s Plant Conservation Volunteer program, please contact PCV Coordinator John Burns at (508) 877-7630 x 3204, or email John at jburns@newenglandwild.org