Distribution
Ukraine

Native to: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Assam, Austria, Baleares, Baltic States, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canary Is., Cape Provinces, Central European Rus, China North-Central, China South-Central, China Southeast, Corse, Cyprus, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, East Aegean Is., East European Russia, East Himalaya, France, Free State, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, India, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kirgizstan, Kriti, Krym, Lebanon-Syria, Lesotho, Madagascar, Madeira, Mongolia, Morocco, Netherlands, North Caucasus, Northwest European R, Pakistan, Palestine, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sardegna, Saudi Arabia, Sicilia, Sinai, South European Russi, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tadzhikistan, Tibet, Transcaucasus, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkey-in-Europe, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, West Himalaya, Xinjiang, Yemen, Yugoslavia, Zaïre.

Introduced into: Amsterdam-St.Paul Is, Finland, Jawa, Michigan, New York, New Zealand North, New Zealand South, Ontario, Pennsylvania, Québec, Sri Lanka, Uruguay, Victoria, Vietnam, Virginia.

Herbs, perennial, cespitose, stooling, 4-10 (-12) dm. Rhizomes 3-5 mm diam. Culms terete, 1.5-3 mm diam. Cataphylls several. Leaves: blade absent. Inflorescences many flowered, open, 2-7 cm; primary bract terete, 10-25 cm. Flowers pedicellate; bracteoles ovate; tepals straw-colored to reddish brown, lanceolate, 2.7-3.5 mm, margins scarious; inner series loosely subtending capsule at maturity, shorter; stamens 6, filaments 0.8-1.5 mm, anthers 0.8-1 mm; style 0.3 mm. Capsules reddish brown to chestnut brown, 3-locular, 3-gonous-ovoid to widely ellipsoid, 3-4 mm, exceeding perianth. Seeds amber, obovoid, 0.3-0.5 mm, not tailed. 2n = 20, 38, 40.
Flowering and fruiting summer. Wet soils along streams, ditches, and on wet, sandy and peaty hillsides.