| Author | (Rottboell) C.B. Clarke | |
| Distribution | Lower Piedmont, Sandhills, and Coastal Plain, but absent from the outer Coastal Plain. Disjunct to Roanoke Island in Dare County.
Coastal Plain, NC to southern FL and LA; C.A., W.I. Naturalized from the Old World tropics. | |
| Abundance | Uncommon to frequent in the NC districts where it occurs. | |
| Habitat | Moist to dry, usually disturbed, soils of fields, lawns, rock outcrops, road banks, forest clearings, exposed shores of rivers. | |
| Phenology | Flowering and fruiting July-October. | |
| Identification | Water-grass may grow to a foot tall, but usually only half that. Multiple filiform (very slender) stems grow from one spot, along with short filiform leaves. A single, brown, starburst-like head terminates each stem. See the key in Weakley (2018) to separate from other Bulbostylis. | |
| Taxonomic Comments | Hairsedges, genus Bulbostylis, are small tufted plants with skinny culms (flowering stems) and leaves; so skinny as to appear wiry or threadlike. The inflorescence is branched and open, or compact. Each spikelet is composed of several to many tiny florets. Key ID features to note include size and ornamentation of seeds and whether plants are annual or perennial. | |
| Other Common Name(s) | Old World Hairsedge. | |
| State Rank | SE * | |
| Global Rank | GNR | |
| State Status | | |
| US Status | | |
| USACE-agcp | FAC link |
| USACE-emp | FAC link |
