Selected Plants of Navajo Rangelands

Diné bikéyah Chi’l nooséłígíí Bąąhą́ą́nosin
Take care of our Navajo Rangelands

Nutsedge, yellow
Tłohi’gaí
(a.k.a. chufa)

Brown spikelets with leaves radiating outward beneath them
Patrick Alexander

Yellow nutsedge is a native plant found across most of North America. Stems are triangular, growing to two feet in height. Leaves are grasslike and glossy. Yellow-brown flowers occur in a terminal cluster. The tubers (nuts) that give the nutsedge its name can remain in the soil even when the plants are pulled up or eaten by livestock. It can grow thickly, particularly in disturbed wetland areas, and is considered invasive.

Nutsedge is not a true grass, but grows in a grasslike form.

Detail of a spikelet showing floret
Patrick Alexander
Prominent seedheads
Howard F. Schwartz, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org
Growth habit showing how densely the nutsedge can grow
Howard F. Schwartz, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org
Stalk with inflorescence and leaves
Howard F. Schwartz, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org
Growth habit showing how densely the nutsedge can grow
Howard F. Schwartz, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org
Scientific Name
Cyperus esculentus
Plant Type
Grass / Grasslike
Growing Season
Warm Season
⚠
Invasive
For definitions, see the glossary.

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