VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Carex bigelowii | Bigelow Sedge 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Bigelow sedge usually does not occur in enough abundance to be
considered an important forage plant [16].  Sheep and caribou, however,
are known to graze it, primarily in the spring and early summer [19].


PALATABILITY : 
Palatability of Bigelow sedge is excellent early in the growing season
and fair late in the summer [16].


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Wein and Bliss [39] found the following plant tissue nutrient
concentrations on burned and unburned arctic tussock tundra sites:

           Macronutrients (% dry weight)        Micronutrients (ppm)
          ---------------------------------    ------------------------
            N      P     K     Ca     Mg          Na       Fe      Mn
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Burned     2.14  0.18   1.32  0.36   0.11        31.3     130.0   863.3
Unburned   1.66  0.13   1.51  0.36   0.15        27.0     217.0   775.7


COVER VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Bigelow sedge has shown good potential for use in revegetation programs,
particularily in northern regions.  In the western Canadian arctic,
growth of Bigelow sedge occurred within 2 months on sites damaged by
crude oil spills [4].  It has also been locally successful at naturally
colonizing borrow pits along the Dempster Highway in northwestern Canada
[21], and is present on sites that are moderately affected by natural
sulfur pollution in the Smoking Hills, Canada [13].  The presence of
Bigelow sedge seed in soil banks allowed for natural revegetation of
bulldozed sites in Alaskan tussock tundra [15].  Bigelow sedge also
appears to be highly resistant to trampling in alpine regions of the
Adirondacks [22].  The extensive, interconnected rhizome system formed
by Bigelow sedge may help to prevent soil erosion.


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
NO-ENTRY


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Bigelow sedge generally increases in response to grazing.  Shoot density
on grazed sites in Iceland was two times higher than on adjacent
ungrazed sites.  Growth of the tillers may have been stimulated by
increased nutrient availability, and trampling may have killed apical
meristems, allowing for increased lateral expansion [19].

Bigelow sedge seeds are buried in soil organic layers.  Stockpiling and
reutilizing the organic matter after man-made disturbances may be a
useful method of restoring natural communities in arctic tussock tundra
[15].  Seeding of natural or exotic grasses on disturbed tundra sites
may inhibit the growth of Bigelow sedge from the seed bank [6].

Related categories for Species: Carex bigelowii | Bigelow Sedge