''Carex'' subg. ''Carex'' is a
subgenus
In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus.
In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between t ...
of the sedge genus ''
Carex''. It is the largest of the four traditionally recognised subgenera, containing around 1400 of the 2000 species in the genus.
Its members are characterised by the presence of one or more exclusively male (staminate) terminal
spikes, quite dissimilar in appearance from the lateral female (pistillate) spikes below.
In most species, the female flowers have three stigmas, but a few species, including ''
Carex nigra
''Carex nigra'' is a perennial species of plants in the family Cyperaceae native to wetlands of Europe, western Asia, northwestern Africa, and eastern North America. Common names include common sedge, black sedge or smooth black sedge. The easte ...
'', have female flowers with only two stigmas.
See also
*
List of ''Carex'' species
References
Carex
Plant subgenera
{{Carex-stub