Those peaty habitats are sustained by hard water near the soil surface. Organic matter mineralisation is very low and the ground is low in nutrients. The vegetation is rich in mosses and sedges. It stays low and with an important floristic diversity.
Those environments are very fragile and vulnerable to drainage and soil enrichment.

Reed and sedge beds are located in shallow waters, moist soils and exposed banks.
The helophyte plants grow with their “feet” in the water and their “head” in the sun. Common reed, commun Club-rush or cattails tower over reeds. The sedge beds consist of tall Carex forming tussocks (compact tufts). Those environments assist the pollutant filtration process and the oxygenation of alpine water bodies.

Aquatic plants (called hydrophytes) live permanently in water. They can absorb dissolved gases and nutrients from the water. These plants float or hold themselves in the water column. In waterways they have adapted to withstand the current with flexible filiform organs, reinforced stems and finely divided leaves.