Flora of North America species comparison

(20–)30–100 cm, 1.5–3.5 mm wide basally, 0.7–1.2 mm wide distally.

acutely angled, 40–140 cm, scabrous.

sheaths usually loose, proximal green-and-white-striped and green-and-white-mottled, with conspicous transverse veins on back, fronts white to hyaline, sometimes red dotted and transversely rugose, yellow or brown and thickened at mouth;

ligules 1–4.5 mm, shorter than to as long as wide;

widest leaf blades 3.5–5 mm wide.

basal sheaths brown;

sheaths of proximal leaves bladeless, scabrous, fronts red-brown to copper-brown, spots absent, indistinctly ladder-fibrillose, apex U-shaped;

blades hypostomic, 13–35 cm × 3–8 mm, papillose abaxially.

with 5–10 spikes, (1.5–)2–5 cm × 8–13 mm;

proximal internodes shorter than to as long as proximal spikes;

proximal bracts to 3 cm;

spikes with 5–15 ascending to spreading perigynia.

peduncle of proximal spike 0.6–3 cm;

proximal bract longer than inflorescence, 1.5–6.2 mm wide.

2–4 pistillate, 1–2 staminate;

pendent;

proximal pistillate spike 3.1–7.9 cm × 3.6–7.4 mm.

pale green to pale brown, veinless or weakly 2–5-veined abaxially, 3.4–4.6 × 1.9–2.8 mm, body somewhat spongy, thickened at base, margins serrulate distally;

beak 0.7–1.4 mm, apical teeth 0.3–1 mm.

ascending, pale brown, 1–5-veined abaxially or veinless, scarcely inflated, loosely enclosing achenes, ovoid, 2.5–3.9 × 1.3–2.1 mm, dull, apex acute, papillose over entire surface;

beak 0.1–0.3 mm.

circular to elliptic-circular, 1.8–2.1 × 1.6–1.8 mm.

not constricted.

scales hyaline or pale brown with green, 1–3-veined center, ovate, 2.2–3.5 × 1.2–1.8 mm, body 2/3 as long to almost length of perigynia, apex acuminate to short-awned.

scales pale to copper-brown; 2.9–6.3 mm (including awn), apex of body truncate, awned, scabrous.

1.5–2.5 mm.

= 66.