Nut grass

Perennial sedge to 40cm tall, stems rigid 3-angled, 1-2mm thick, with tuberous base; underground runners forming dark reddish-brown to black tubers, commonly referred to as ‘nuts’.

Weed Category:	Other invasive plants Invasive plants that are not prohibited or restricted invasive plants, but are known to spread readily and cause negative impacts, within the region.
Weed:	Yes
Form or habit:	Sedges, Rushes and allies
Family:	Cyperaceae
Leaf:	Simple Basal Simple, basal, bright green clustered at ground level, 75-125 x 2-6mm, tapered to a fine point.
Flower conspicuous:	Conspicuous
Flower colour:	Red, Brown
Flower description:	Consist of 2-4 green leaf-like bracts and 4-5 branches of varying length, all arising at the top of a single thin triangular stem. Each branch carries a cluster of flattened rich red-brown spikelets, 10-25 x 2-2.5mm.
Fruit conspicuous:	Inconspicuous
Fruit colour:	Brown, Red
Fruit:	Dry
Fruit description:	This species seldom produces mature ‘seeds’.
Habitat:
Distribution
Food source for:
Toxicity:	No toxicity known
Origin:	Africa
Notes:	Spread by: ‘nuts’ (tubers) in contaminated soil and garden waste. Invades/threats: cultivated soil and damp pastures; gardens and lawns. Can infest large areas. Notes: difficult to eradicate because ‘nuts’ can lie dormant in the soil. Environmental weed.
Information sources:	Mackay Regional Pest Management Group (2018) Weeds of the Mackay Whitsunday Region Second Edition.