Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

This is a toughie. No one said Mr. Smarty Plants could come up with everything, but we tried hard. The most difficult requirement we encountered in our research was mowability. In order to find the five candidates we came up with, we went first to "Plant Database", and down the page to the "Combination Search". There, we filled in the criteria as: State-New York, Growing Habit-grass or grass-like, Light requirements-part to full shade and Moisture-wet.

Carex amphibola (eastern narrowleaf sedge) . This sedge is listed as endangered in New Jersey and New York, so I'm not sure about its availability, but it's good for erosion and wet conditions.

Carex frankii (Frank's sedge) . This apparently grows up to 2-1/2 feet tall, so, unless it took severe mowing well, it's probably not a good candidate.

Carex plantaginea (plantainleaf sedge) .This sedge grows to 1 to 2 feet tall, same problem as above.

Elymus canadensis (Canada wildrye) . This is a ryegrass, which you already said you didn't want, and besides, it grows 2 to 4 feet.

Carex pedunculata (longstalk sedge) . This looks like it might be a winner. On this North American Native Plant Society site, this writer was enthusiastic over this sedge. She also mentions several other native sedges which we don't happen to have on our Native Plant Database, but might be well worth your researching on Google. And she has information on the availability and propagation of the sedges. We found no references to its mowability, but this particular sedge was referred to as 5 inches tall. You might not need to mow.

Now, you get your homework assignment. First, we would suggest you follow the above links and read the information in our database about each plant. A few of them have pictures, as well. If you feel we chose the wrong criteria for our search (too much moisture, not enough sun?), you can do the "Combination Search" for yourself. It will give you a list that fits the requirements you have put in, and you can check the data pages on each of them. And, then go through the article on the North American Native Plant Society site, and see if our nominee for the award is a winner.

Finally, thank you for planning to use plants native to North America and to your geographical area in your landscaping. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is all about using native plants as a benefit to the environment.