White Bracted Sedge is a native plant found in the coastal plains from NC south to FL and west to TX in wet, open areas, depressions, marshes and ditches. It is an unusual native sedge with white star-shaped blooms that sit above the grass-like foliage and is best used in large numbers to create a field of white flowers. It will bloom all throughout the summer and needs partial to full sun. It requires moist, acidic, sandy or peaty soil and is best used in marshes, a rain garden, bogs or pond edges. It can also be grown in containers.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Herbaceous Perennial; Native Plant; Ornamental Grasses and Sedges; Water Plant
Life cycle
Perennial
USDA zones
7a, 7b, 8a, 9a, 10a, 10b
Light
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
High Organic Matter; Loam (Silt); Sand
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0)
Soil drainage
Frequent Standing Water | Moist | Occasionally Wet
NC region
Coastal
Mature size
Height: 1 ft. 0 in. - 3 ft. 0 in. | Width: 2 ft. 0 in. - 3 ft. 0 in.
Growth rate
Medium
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous (3-15 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect; Spreading
Texture
Fine
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf shape
Linear
Leaf margin
Entire
Leaf size
> 6 inches long, < 1 inch wide
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
Narrow pointed grass-like leaves are linear with entire margins. Stem leaves are smaller than basal leaves.
Flower color
Gold/Yellow; White
Flower value
Long Bloom Season; Showy
Flower form
Head
Flower shape
Star
Flower detail
7-10 large bracts surround the less-conspicuous yellow inflorescence. The bracts are white at the base, becoming green at the tips. They appear on a terminal head-like cluster of spikelets that overtop the leaves. Blooms from May to September
Bloom time
Summer
Fruit color
Brown/Copper
Fruit type
Achene
Fruit detail
Two-sided brown nutlet. Displays from June to October.
Stem color
Green
Stem detail
Green stems 12-36 inches
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Native
Origin
Coastal plain from NC to s.e. TX
Distribution
AL , FL , GA , LA , MS , NC , OK , SC , TN , TX
Attracts
Butterflies; Pollinators; Small Mammals
Food & Medicine
Harvest time
Fall; Summer
Fruit type
Achene
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Coastal; Container; Naturalized Area; Pond
Landscape theme
Native Garden; Pollinator Garden; Rain Garden; Water Garden
Design feature
Mass Planting
Garden tags
#white flowers #showy flowers #long bloom time #deciduous #pond margins #summer flowers #star shaped flowers #native water plant #Coastal FACW #food source herbage #food source summer #food source hard mast fruit #food source fall #Audubon #sedge #native sedge #boggy sites #NC native #NC Native Pollinator Plant #wetland