Fraser’s Sedge: A Native Perennial with Potential

Keith P. Tomlinson

The American Gardener. The Magazine of the American Horticultural Society.
January/ February 2009

Gardeners in the Mid-Atlantic states can cultivate an extraordinary palette of plants. Over the past few decades, many of the region’s native species have grown in popularity. While many Mid-Atlantic natives have a wide distribution, others are more localized or ever rare. Nearly 20 years ago I stumbled upon just such a plant in the West Virginia highlands. At first its broad shiny rosette of leaves seemed yucca-like, or even akin to a bromeliad. But after a little research, I knew it could only be Fraser’s sedge (Cymophyllus fraserianus, syn. Carex fraserianus, USDA Hardiness Zones 5-8, AHS Heat Zones 8-5).

For plant enthusiasts of the Appalachian Mountains, Fraser’s sedge is a mythic plant, not often seen, but frequently sought after, perhaps because it is arguably the world’s most unique sedge. Growing in rich mountain forests from Pennsylvania to Georgia, Fraser’s sedge embodies the antiquity of the Appalachians. Named for plant explorer John Fraser, who discovered it while roaming the Appalachians in the 18th century, it is considered by botanists to be a particularly primitive sedge. Although it is fairly easy to grow, Fraser’s sedge is rarely found even in the most sophisticated home landscapes and botanical garden collections.

In the wild, Fraser’s sedge grows most often in diverse hardwood forests with rich soils and dappled to medium shade. A clump former, in cultivation its radial leaf arrangement can grow to more than a foot in diameter. The thick, glossy dark green leaves grow 10 to 15 inches long and nearly an inch wide, tending to flop as they mature. The foliage is evergreen, so it provides considerable winter interest. But the real show comes in late spring, when cone-shaped flowerheads emerge on upright stems. The pure white inflorescences are composed of a cluster of male flowers with showy, threadlike anthers above a ring of less conspicuous female flowers.

Garden uses for Fraser’s sedge are wide ranging. It is a superb specimen plant in a woodland garden. In addition, it can be planted en masse to produce a stunning array of rosette leaves year round. Initial observations of Fraser’s sedge at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in Vienna, Virginia, where I work, suggest it will tolerate more sun than one might expect, given its native habitat.

Using native plants is more than a horticultural trend, it is a way to support the biodiversity of your region by creating ecologically balanced landscapes. There are few natives more horticulturally interesting than Fraser’s sedge. Unfortunately, it is threatened or endangered in several states. As with many native plants, its introduction to broader horticultural use through sustainable propagation techniques can help conserve the plant in the wild.

Fraser’s sedge is available from a few specialists in the southeastern United States. A few years ago, while attending the Cullowhee Native Plant conference, held annually at Western North Carolina University, I encountered it in the vendor’s exhibit area, nestled discreetly among the offerings from Enchanter’s garden in Hinton, West Virginia. Seeing it there recalled the excitement of my first sighting of it in the wild two decades earlier.