Species · genus Cyperus · Cyperaceae

Miniature Flatsedge

Cyperus prolifer Lam.

Also known as: Dwarf Papyrus · Miniature Papyrus

Growth habit

perennial or rhizomatous geophyte

Native range

Cape Provinces, Kenya, KwaZulu-Natal, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Somalia, Tanzania, Zimbabwe

Reference · C. prolifer

Cultivars of C. prolifer

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

No named cultivars catalogued under C. prolifer 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.

A dwarf papyrus from African and Madagascan wetlands, this rhizomatous sedge is a true marginal aquatic that wants its roots constantly wet. Unlike most houseplants, do not let it dry out: keep the pot standing in a saucer of water or in continually saturated mix, topping up when the water level drops below the soil surface. Give it bright indirect light and high humidity, conditions that echo the sunlit pond margins it grows on.

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 1-3d)
Humidity: ai:claude-opus-4-8
Soil: ai:claude-fable-5
Care: ai:claude-fable-5

Light

Bright, indirect

Water

≈ every 3 days

Humidity

High

Temperature

16–27 °C

Soil mix

Constantly moist, rich potting mix

Propagation

Division, or plantlets rooted from the umbel heads

Fertilizing

Balanced liquid feed monthly in the growing season

Growth rate

Moderate

Flowering

Fine green-brown umbel tufts; grown mainly for foliage

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 1-3d) · ai:claude-fable-5

Kept true by its growers

Every fact here carries its source. Grow Miniature Flatsedge 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.