This association occurs in moderately-rich fens which are poorer in calcium than floristically and ecologically similar fens of the Menyantho trifoliatae-Sphagnetum teretis association. This is reflected in a lower representation of calcicolous species. The vegetation is composed of short and tall sedges, including species with a boreal distribution such as Carex chordorrhiza and C. diandra, as well as several endangered species and glacial relicts. Calliergonella cuspidata and Sphagnum teres are the most common dominant species of the moss layer. The association is mainly distributed in north-western Europe, and in the Czech Republic it occurs predominantly in the Třeboň Basin (fens at fishpond margins), the Doksy area and the Bohemian-Moravian Uplands.