The sedge family (Cyperaceae) is one of the 10 largest families of flowering plants, with over 5000 species and 108 genera. Sedges grow on every continent except Antarctica. They occur in habitats ranging from marshes to deserts, and they dominate many ecosystems, including tundra and savanna. Some species are habitat-specific, narrowly distributed, and of conservation concern, whereas others are ubiquitous weeds that occur in a variety of environments. Many species fill key ecological roles, and others are economically important. Yet, sedges remain poorly known. Their reduced flowers and complicated patterns of morphologic variation make the identification of these fascinating plants challenging. As a result, many have avoided the study of sedges as too difficult.

Over the past decade, a marked upsurge of interest in sedges has occurred. Professional botanists, conservationists, and students have made rapid strides in understanding the ecology, economics, taxonomy, and phylogeny of the Cyperaceae. As the proceedings of the first international conference devoted to sedges, Sedges: Uses, Diversity, and Systematics of the Cyperaceae is a keystone of sedge literature. This volume contains 14 chapters authored by internationally renowned experts in sedge biology. Many facets of sedges are covered, both as reviews of current knowledge and as reports of original research. Topics include ethnobotany, weeds, biogeography, floristics, conservation, ecology, genetic diversity, phylogeny, and taxonomy. Both taxonomic and geographic coverage are broad: Carex to Uncinia, and boreal North America to Amazonia. Field exploration, analysis of morphologic data, molecular systematics, and allozyme analysis are among the diversity of techniques featured in this book.

Robert F. C. Naczi is Curator of North American Botany at The New York Botanical Garden, and formerly Curator of the Claude E. Phillips Herbarium at Delaware State University. He studies the systematics of Cyperaceae, especially the taxonomy, geographic distribution, and phylogeny of North American Carex. His research also focuses on the systematics, relationships with arthropod symbionts, and conservation of the Western Hemisphere Pitcher plants (Sarraceniaceae).

Bruce A. Ford is Curator of Vascular Plants at the University of Manitoba Herbarium and professor in the Department of Biological Sciences. He works on the systematics of Carex focusing on the taxonomy, population genetics, and phylogeny of this genus. In addition to his research on sedges, he studies the genetic structure of dwarf mistletoes (Arceuthobium spp.) and their coniferous hosts. He has also authored a number of treatments for the Flora of North America.

From the Contents

1. Frosted Curls to Tiger Nuts: Ethnobotany of Cyperaceae David A. Simpson

2. The Significance of Cyperaceae as Weeds Charles T. Bryson and Richard Carter

3. Diversity, Endemism, and Phytogeography of North American Coastal Plain Sedges Bruce A. Sorrie

4. Carex (Cyperaceae) of the Kisatchie National Forest, Louisiana, U.S.A. Philip E. Hyatt

5. Description of the Population, Canopy Cover, and Associated Vegetation of the Globally Rare Sedge Carex polymorpha (Cyperaceae) in Nescopeck State Park, Pennsylvania Jamie L. Horvath, Timothy A. Block, and Ann Fowler Rhoads

6. Segregation of Sedge Species (Cyperaceae) Along Environmental Gradients in Fens of the Schefferville Region, Northern Quebec Anna Dabros and Marcia J. Waterway

7. The Carex Flora of Quebec Labrador North of 54 degrees North Jacques Cayouette

8. Allozyme Variation in the Genus Carex...15 Years Later: 1986 to 2001 Leo P. Bruederle, Stephen L. Yarbrough, and Shannon D. Fehlberg

9. Phylogeny and Patterns of Convergence in Carex Sect. Ovales (Cyperaceae): Evidence from ITS and 5.8S Sequences Andrew L. Hipp

10. East vs. West: Monophyletic Clades Within the Paraphyletic Carex acuta Complex, Section Phacocystis (Cyperaceae) Julie A. Dragon and David S. Barrington

11. Carex Sect. Phyllostachyae: The Value of a Multidisciplinary Approach in Conducting Systematics Studies in Sedges Bruce A. Ford, Robert F. C. Naczi, and Julian R. Starr

12. Phylogeny of the Unispicate Taxa in Cyperaceae Tribe Cariceae II: The Limits of Uncinia Julian R. Starr, Stephen A. Harris, and David A. Simpson

13. Towards a Revision of the Genus Pleurostachys (Cyperaceae): Preliminary Results William Wayt Thomas and Marccus Alves

14. Cladistic Analysis in Rhynchospora Sect. Pluriflorae (Cyperaceae) Ana Claudia Araujo, William Wayt Thomas, and Hilda M. Longhi Wagner