Carex oshimensis 'Feather Falls' is a cascading evergreen sedge prized for its arching foliage streaked with bright white margins and deep green centers. Its tidy fountain like form makes it ideal for container arrangements, spilling over walls, or softening shady garden edges. Unlike some other carex, it maintains color and vigor through winter and offers excellent erosion control on slopes or rain garden borders.
Height & Spread: 12 - 18 in x 18 - 24 in
Bloom Time: Mid to late spring (insignificant flowers)
Light Requirements: Part shade to full shade
Soil Preference: Moist, well drained soils rich in organic matter
Watering Needs: Moderate; benefits from consistent moisture in heat
Deer Resistance: Rarely browsed by deer or rabbits
Native Status
Originally native to Japan, Carex oshimensis 'Feather Falls' is a cultivated variety bred for ornamental use and broad landscape adaptability.
WILDLIFE & INSECTS
Birds
- Its dense arching habit provides ground level nesting cover for wrens and sparrows in shaded habitats.
Beneficial Insects
- Offers shelter and moisture stability to beetles, ground spiders, and predatory rove beetles that support pest control under shady canopies.
Spacing & Landscape Use
Spacing Recommendations:
- Space 18 - 24 in apart to allow for mature arching spread and airflow around clumps.
Landscape Placement:
- Use in containers, shaded pathways, woodland margins, or slope stabilization in rain gardens where texture and erosion control are needed.
Companion Plants
- Polygonatum odoratum 'Variegatum' - Graceful upright stems with white edged leaves echo the Carex’s stripes and offer vertical lift in part shade.
- Brunnera macrophylla 'Jack Frost' - Silver veined foliage and spring blue flowers pair beautifully with the fine grass like texture of sedge.
- Heuchera 'Palace Purple' - Deep burgundy foliage contrasts dramatically with the bright variegated sedge blades.
- Epimedium x rubrum - Spring blooming red yellow flowers hover above delicate heart shaped leaves that complement the arching sedge form.
- Hosta 'June' - Rounded chartreuse blue foliage serves as a bold broad foil to the narrow leafed Carex.