I was at the Theodore Payne Foundation a few days ago and saw an installation of a native meadow grass. I wish I'd taken a photo or jotted down the name of it, it was lovely. We have an area we were thinking of planting with stepping stones and Australian astroturf, but this is giving me pause to rethink and stick with a native grass.

At first I thought it was shorter than divulsa, of which I also have a lot of. Now established for almost 2 years, its as tall as carex divulsa, maybe taller in flower.

I trimmed it all back with hedge clippers in winter, but it was a lot of work. Think I need a power tool. Is a string trimmer a good choice or do I need a mower?

The c. divulsa is in the front yard, and rambunctiously flowering encroaching on some precious agaves and other succulents. My neighbors have such manicured lawns, I feel obliged not to let it be too wild, although it probably already is for their taste!

Hence I might need to trim the front back twice a year. I need a power tool, do you guys think a string trimmer? I have never owned one, so am unfamiliar with their prowess.

And the other reason I suspect they grew tall is, this winter, I dug out some clumps from a few of the edges for more plants to expand. Instead of refilling it with soil, i just threw in horse manure. I'll never do that again! I followed Las Pilatas advice originally when planting and did not amend the soil.

"Dune Sedge, Carex pansa is a very small creeping dune plant. Leaves making little tufts where it is happy. The happier the plant, the bigger the lawn. Needs near beach sand. The only time I've ever seen it look good in the wild was in an inner dune low spot that was moist and protected, then Dune Sedge almost made a lumpy lawn. Dune sedge cannot compete with alien grasses such as Veldt or Bromus. It sometimes gets called out for restoration, in that situation it should be either grown from propagules from the site, or divided on site. In yards it will only work in beach sand, moist protected flagstone/paver crack type situations.
Someone has been spending time talking this one up.
Here's a typical email or conversation. We want a lawn for about 5000 sq. feet of our backyard. However, we don't want to water or mow much (with the emphasis on water). We live in Los Osos where our soil is relatively fine-grained, dirty sand. We have two kids ages 7 and 4 who want to play sports (soccer, wiffle ball, etc.) in the backyard. Carex pansa looks like it might do the trick but we have a few questions: 1. Will it take traffic? no 2. Would it be a good idea to add something like composted steer manure to the soil? no 3. Can a gallon be split to create plugs? yes but we only have a few 4. Will we really be using less water than something like a dwarf tall fescue or other slow-growing, drought resistant grass mixes that could be grown from seed? (In the driest months, in areas that we don't water, the sand is moist 6-10 inches down and deeper.)
Carex pansa is native there, forming little clumps separated by feet of open sand kinda like a dog with mange. Will not work as lawn, none of the natives will that we've seen, except maybe Dantonia, but it needs more water than some of the turf lawn grasses. If you wish to try to make a lawn with Dune Sedge make the lawn as small as you can to make the kids happy, put in 'trails' , native groundcovers and shrubs. Wildlife, kids and you will be happy."

On the other hand, Carex divulsa is indestructible in sun/shade/clay soils that actually flood in heavy rains, yet can also look great with just once a month irrigation in summer. I've mown it once a month in the warmer months with a rotary mower to a 4" height, and no need to mow at all in the winter. If you're willing to mow more frequently, then Carex divulsa is certainly a tougher plant which takes worse conditions. If not mown, it will get 18" tall, not exactly a walkable height.

How close does Carex divulsa resemble a normal lawn in appearance, assuming it is mowed to an appropriate height? Thanks.

-Brett

Here is what their website says:

Carex praegracilis ("pansa") CLUSTERED FIELD SEDGE texture a species that grows wild from the Yukon through California, the Great Plains, Midwest and Atlantic Coast states and only stops at Texas and the Southeast. It has become entrenched in the California landscape trade as C. pansa, another native species of much more restricted distribution (coastal strand dunes only) and little garden adaptability. This will grow as a low (under 1'), matting to spreading clump that will take some foot traffic but not mowing. It has a meadowy look and can serve as a lawn substitute unless you have pets or kids that want to play on it. It can be used over large areas and is aggressive enough to exclude most weeds, needs little (but some!) watering when established, and is frost hardy enough to be grown in, well, the Yukon. It is salt and alkaline tolerant if those are issues. rev 1/2010

Still doesn't explain why mine grew so tall, but I guess it's yet another case of a plant growing to gargantuan sizes compared to stated size.