[Sedges: The Genus Carex in Mt. Adams Country]

The photo above shows Brewer's sedge as seen on the dry, coarsely volcanic sand slopes of Mt. Hood about one mile above Timberline Lodge.........August 29, 2008. The fat, distinctly ovate inflorescences are easily recognizable here. The similar Engelmann's sedge has a similar inflorescence. Brewer's sedge is found on the high Cascade volcanoes from Mt. Adams south, while Engelmann's sedge is found in similar habitats from Mt. Adams northward in the Cascades.

Close-up images of the inflorescence of Brewer's sedge as seen on south-facing slopes of Mt. Hood about one mile above Timberline Lodge.........August 29, 2008. Easily seen here is the narrow male portion of the inflorescence which extends several millimeters above the main, broader portion of the inflorescence. This androgynous region of the inflorescence is much harder to distinguish on the similar Engelmann's sedge.

The photo above shows a close-up of the perigynia of Brewer's sedge as seen on the south-facing slopes of Mt. Hood about one mile above Timberline Lodge...........August 29, 2008. The perigynia are ovate in outline, flattened and somewhat similar in appearance to a potato chip.

Brewer's sedge as seen on the dry, coarsely volcanic sand slopes of Mt. Hood about one mile above Timberline Lodge........August 29, 2008.

The photo above shows Brewer's sedge as seen high on the volcanic sand slopes of Mt. Hood above Timberline Lodge..........August 29, 2008. Click each photo to see an enlarged version. The samples viewed in this series of photos have begun to lose their perigynia, thus giving the inflorescence of each a much narrower appearance. The author at first wanted to identify them as black alpine sedge (Carex nigricans) which is found nearby along small rivulets, but the dry habitat and distinct perigynia point to Brewer's sedge.