Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS

Nomenclature

Common Name:

fineleaf whitetop sedge, starrush whitetop

Synonym(s):

Dichromena colorata

Genus species:

Rhynchospora colorata

Family:

Cyperaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

grass

Size:

1-2 ft tall by spreads many ft wide

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white

Fruit Color:

NA

Phenology:

Fall-winter dormant. Blooms in spring.

Noted For:

Showy Flowers

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Can use as a groundcover in moist sites. Good in an informal savanna setting, rain garden or bioswale.

Considerations:

Availability:

Native Nurseries, Seed

Propagation:

Division, seed.

Light:

Full Sun, Part Sun

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded------------------------------------------------Extremely Dry

Coming Soon!

Usually moist, occasional inundation ---to--- Not wet but not extremely dry

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Some tolerance to salty wind but not direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand, Loam, Organic

Soil pH:

Acidic

Suitable to Grow In:

8A,8B,9A,9B,10A,10B

Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators, Butterflies

Attracts bees and butterflies.  This is a sedge, and most sedges are wind pollinated, so having a showy "flower" and attracting insects is not common.

Native Habitats:

Wet flatwoods, wet prairie.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

This is a sedge. Most Rhynchospora species are wind pollinated. The white bracts of this species attract insects.