Buy Carex laxiculmis

I'm sooooo very tired of seeing acres of that ubiquitous Liriope used by landscape architects with no imagination at all. While I'll admit that there are a few attractive, variegated forms of this Asian native that have come to be known commonly as "Lily Turf", their hardiness is questionable and they don't do very well in the shade. Like an answer to a prayer, in comes our native sedge, Carex laxiculmis! Carex laxiculmis is native to almost every state east of the Mississippi and most of eastern Canada. You've probably walked over or around it on a hike in the woods and didn't notice it there amongst the rocks and tree roots. The image I've chosen to share with you today is not a beautifully groomed, suburban landscape job. Rather, it is an illustration of, and tribute to, the extreme conditions that this useful plant can withstand. Talk about "Low Maintenance", this plant is "NO Maintenance"!! The location is thin soil in deep shade on a south facing hillside on my farm. These nearly barren, dry woods have had no significant rainfall or watering for over 8 weeks and the plants still look good. Given a lawn or garden setting, Carex laxiculmis is quick to fill in a bare area and can take bright sun with a bit of occasional watering and a good mulch, or light to deep shade with no attention at all. It's very easy to divide and make new plants. Soooo many folks come to me looking for grass-like plants to grow in the shade. It seems that we haven't gotten over the love of lawns that we've grown up with, even though we can all admit to their being ecologically detrimental to the environment. Since this evergreen plant is so low growing, it NEVER needs mowing and NEVER takes on an unsightly appearance at any time of the year. I'm confident that you'll find multiple uses for this great plant in your home gardens and landscape and I look forward to sharing it with you and to hearing back from you about your experiences with it.