Variegated broadleaf sedge
Carex siderosticha 'Variegata' · Cyperaceae
Unusually broad, strap-like leaves, like a small hosta's, green with white edges and pink bases in spring.
- Size
- 8 in tall, 18 in wide
- Zones
- 5 to 9
- Light
- Part shade to shade
- Flowers
- Grown for its leaves
- Pets
- Not checked
- Job in a bed
- Carpet
A bed built around variegated broadleaf sedge
The planner designed this bed around variegated broadleaf sedge when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) naturalistic planting in zone 6, part shade. It chose the other plants from the 513 that suit those conditions, and says below why variegated broadleaf sedge stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Variegated broadleaf sedge × 7, variegated leaves
- 2 Bleeding heart 'King of Hearts' × 5, pink
- 3 Turtlehead 'Hot Lips' × 5, pink
- 4 Northern sea oats 'River Mist' × 3, green
- 5 Golden ragwort × 20, yellow
- 6 Grecian windflower × 8, blue
Why this plant
- The only plant grown for its leaves. Leaf lasts all season, where a flower lasts a few weeks.
- The only bold leaves here. The rest are fine and medium. A change of leaf keeps plants distinct when nothing is in flower.
- Part of the matrix. The low fabric of grasses and groundcovers that the taller plants come up through.
Why here
- On the front edge. At 8 in it frames the bed without hiding it, and it is in leaf all season. It finishes 71% of the edge.
- 7 plants in 2 runs (5 and 2). Runs of different lengths make the edge a frame, not a ruled line.
- Bold leaf against fine. Bleeding heart 'King of Hearts' is beside it: the strongest contrast of leaf there is.
Why now
- Here for its leaves, spring to frost. They cover the 14 weeks between early March and late November when nothing on the plan is in flower.
- Stands through winter. Left uncut, it holds its shape until March, when the perennials have gone.
Planned as a naturalistic planting: low grasses and groundcovers, the matrix, make up 68% of the planted ground. The flowers run from early April to late September: 26 weeks in all. There is more golden ragwort than anything else, 20 plants in all.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 4 Good. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where variegated broadleaf sedge goes in a border
At 8 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is low (6 to 12 in).
Its job: carpet. A groundcover planted in threes and fives to cover the soil: along the front, and just behind it.
A sedge that reads as a broad-leaved plant. It creeps slowly into a bright patch in woodland soil and dies back in winter.
- Bold-leaved groundcover in shade
- Brightening woodland beds
- Contrast with ferns
What to plant with variegated broadleaf sedge
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Japanese painted fern: fine leaves against its bold ones; tall enough (18 in) to stand behind it; happy in the same moist soil.
- Foamflower: adds the flowers, late April to late May; medium leaves against its bold ones; spires rising out of its mound.
- Hosta 'Blue Mouse Ears': medium leaves against its bold ones; spires rising out of its mound; happy in the same moist soil.
Questions about variegated broadleaf sedge
Does variegated broadleaf sedge need sun or shade?
Variegated broadleaf sedge grows in part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning) and shade (less than 2 hours of direct sun, or bright dappled light).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does variegated broadleaf sedge grow in?
USDA zones 5 to 9. It is hardy to zone 5, which means it survives winter nights down to about −10 °F (−23 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
How far apart should variegated broadleaf sedge be planted?
14 in (35 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 18 in (45 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 8 in (20 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many variegated broadleaf sedge plants do I need?
At 14 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 9 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 9 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 28 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as threes and fives, along the front and just behind it.
In the bed above, the planner used seven in two groups.
Is there a native plant like variegated broadleaf sedge?
Variegated broadleaf sedge is not native to North America. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:
- Pennsylvania sedge: the same job in a bed; 6 in narrower, fine leaves, not bold.
- Wild ginger: the same job in a bed; 4 in narrower.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
What does variegated broadleaf sedge look like in winter?
Variegated broadleaf sedge turns the colour of straw and, left uncut, stands through the winter. Cut it down in late winter, before the new shoots come up.
More Carex
- Appalachian sedge Carex appalachica
- Blue sedge Carex flacca
- Blue sedge 'Blue Zinger' Carex flacca 'Blue Zinger'
- Bowles' golden sedge Carex elata 'Aurea'
- Bristleleaf sedge Carex eburnea
- Gray's sedge Carex grayi
- Japanese sedge 'Ice Dance' Carex morrowii 'Ice Dance'
- Leatherleaf sedge Carex buchananii
- Orange New Zealand sedge Carex testacea
- Palm sedge Carex muskingumensis
- Pennsylvania sedge Carex pensylvanica
- Sedge 'Bunny Blue' Carex laxiculmis 'Hobb' (Bunny Blue)
- Sedge 'Everest' Carex oshimensis 'Everest'
- Sedge 'Evergold' Carex oshimensis 'Evergold'
- Sedge 'Everillo' Carex oshimensis 'Everillo'
- Sedge 'Frosted Curls' Carex comans 'Frosted Curls'
- Seersucker sedge Carex plantaginea
- Tussock sedge Carex stricta
- Variegated Japanese sedge Carex morrowii 'Variegata'
In these guides
Every fact on record
- Type
- Grass (groundcover)
- Size
- 8 in (20 cm) tall, 18 in (45 cm) wide
- Plant
- 14 in (35 cm) apart
- Height class
- Low (6 to 12 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- None: grown for its foliage
- Leaves
- Bold texture, deciduous; variegated
- Shape
- Mat-forming, spreading
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 5 to 9
- Light
- Part shade, shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Cyperaceae
Not yet checked against an outside reference: its figures rest on general horticultural knowledge. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.