Flora of Israel: Coco nut-grass

Cyperus rotundus, Coco nut-grass,
Hebrew: גומא הפקעים, Arabic: حشيشة السعيد, Egypt: سعد “Se’d”

Scientific name:   Cyperus rotundus L.
Common name:   Coco nut-grass
Hebrew name:   גומא הפקעים
Arabic name:   حشيشة السعيد
Egypt:   سعد “Se’d”
Plant Family:   Cyperaceae, גמאיים


Life form:   Geophyte
Stems:   30-40 cm in height; smooth, erect, triangular in cross-section
Leaves:   Alternate, rosette, entire
Flowers:   Green, brown
Fruits / pods:   Single-seeded fruit, brown to black with a network of grey lines; 2 mm long
Flowering Period:   February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
Habitat:   Disturbed habitats
Distribution:   Mediterranean Woodlands and Shrublands, Semi-steppe shrublands, Shrub-steppes, Deserts and extreme deserts
Chorotype:   Subtropical – Tropical
Summer shedding:   Ephemeral


Derivation of the botanical name:

Cyperus, kyperos, kypeiros “galingale, sedge”; Latin cyperos, the name cyperis, idis was applied by Plinius to the root of the Cyperus.

rotundus, round, spherical; rounded.
The Hebrew word: גומא, gômê or gomeh; in the Mishnah and Talmudic literature, gomeh is called “Gami” and sometimes also called “Papier”.

  • The standard author abbreviation L. is used to indicate Carl Linnaeus (1707 – 1778), a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, the father of modern taxonomy.