Species · genus Cyperus · Cyperaceae

Umbrella Sedge

Cyperus alternifolius L.

Also known as: Umbrella Grass · Umbrella Palm · Umbrella Papyrus · Umbrella Plant

Growth habit

perennial or rhizomatous geophyte

Native range

New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia

Reference · C. alternifolius

Cultivars of C. alternifolius

The named forms growers keep — each with its own page, each honest about how much we know.

No named cultivars catalogued under C. alternifolius yet. When growers document a stable, named form, it earns its own page here.

Guide

The species-level account. Cultivar pages build on this and say where they differ.

Cyperus alternifolius is a rhizomatous sedge from Australian wetlands and marshy margins, so unlike most houseplants it genuinely wants its roots kept consistently wet and never allowed to dry out fully. Keep the mix saturated and water when the surface begins to feel less than soaked; it tolerates standing in a saucer of water. Give it bright indirect light and humid air to match its boggy native habit.

Care recipe

The species record — the baseline every cultivar inherits unless it says otherwise.

Care notes are early — not yet verified

Light: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Water: ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 2-5d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 5 days

Humidity

High

Temperature

16–27 °C

Soil mix

Rich, water-retentive mix kept constantly wet

Propagation

Division of clumps, or umbel cuttings floated in water

Fertilizing

Balanced liquid feed monthly in the growing season

Growth rate

Fast

Flowering

Airy brown flower clusters atop the umbels

ToxicityAuthoritative · species

Not yet documented

This is where toxicity lives — every cultivar of this species inherits it and none can override it.

Reference images

Every image credited. Licenses link to their deeds.

No reference gallery yet

A few clear photos — habit, a mature leaf, a flower if it blooms — would give this page its eyes.

Add images

Sources: ai:claude-opus-4-8 · ai:claude-opus-4-8 (range 2-5d) · ai:claude-fable-5

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Umbrella Sedge yourself? What you’ve observed — how it drinks, how it holds its color, a name that’s off — is exactly what keeps this page honest. Contributions are reviewed before anything changes.