Flora of North America species comparison

to 30 cm, bases soft.

(5–) 10–20 cm.

spreading to ascending, ¼–1/3 length of scapes;

sheath borders tan, backs prominently ribbed, glabrous;

blades filiform, 0.5 mm wide, involute, margins ciliate-scabrid, surface glabrous.

1/2–2/3 length of culms;

sheaths brownish to stramineous, glabrous or scabrid along ribs;

blades spreading-recurved, filiform, 0.5 mm wide, involute, margins and adaxial ribs hispidulous.

solitary or more commonly in simple, open, rarely compact, involucrate anthelae;

scapes filiform (rarely with several spikelets sessile or subsessile at plant base), prominently ribbed, glabrous;

proximalmost involucral bract cuspidate or setaceous bladed, exceeding or exceeded by inflorescence.

scapes erect to spreading, wiry, angularly ribbed, 0.6–1 mm thick, hispidulous;

spikelets in dense, terminal, top-shaped to hemispheric involucrate heads, 1–1.5 cm wide;

longer involucral bracts with setaceous blades many times exceeding heads, gradually dilating to scarious-bordered, entire sheaths.

red-brown, ovoid to lanceoloid, 3–5 mm;

fertile scales ovate, 1.5–2 mm, apex acute, glabrous or distally puberulent, keel prominent, short-excurrent.

usually greenish or dull brown, oblong to lance-ovoid, 3–5 mm;

fertile scales ovate, keeled, 3–4 mm, abaxially hirtellous, midrib excurrent forming excurved mucro, scabrid.

stamens (1–)2;

anthers oblong-elliptic, 0.5–0.7 mm.

stamens 1;

anthers oblong, 0.5 mm.

yellowish to pale brown, trigonous-obovoid, 1 mm, faces rugose.

pale or graybrown, broadly trigonousobovoid, rather sharply 3-ribbed, 1 mm, faces flat or somewhat concave, finely transversely rugose;

tubercle a depressed-conic button.

= 84.

= 30.