Flora of North America species comparison

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

brown at base, densely covered with brown fibrillose remains of previous year’s leaves; flowering stems 30–90 cm, longer than leaves at maturity, 0.5–0.7 mm thick, glabrous but finely scabrous within inflorescence.

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.

sheaths glabrous, basal ones tinged with brown and all bearing blades, green to hyaline on back, white-hyaline on front;

blades flat, 2.5–4 mm wide, finely scabrous on adaxial surface and margins, glabrous on abaxial surface.

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.

peduncles of lateral spikes slender, 20–60 mm, equaling or somewhat longer than spikes, finely scabrous;

peduncle of terminal spike 5–15 mm, scabrous;

proximal bracts equaling inflorescences or more often shorter;

sheaths 3–5 mm or rarely longer;

blades 1–1.5 mm wide.

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.

shiny tan to golden green, 2-ribbed, but otherwise veinless, closely enveloping achene at maturity, ovoid-ellipsoid, 4.5–6.5 × 1.5–2 mm, membranous, base acute, apex abruptly contracted to beak, glabrous;

beak bidentate, narrowly tubular, nearly as long as body, finely scabrous on edge, teeth hyaline, 1 mm.

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

substipitate, 2–2.5 × 1.7–1.8 mm.

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 hyaline tinged with chestnut, narrow midrib green, sometimes finely scabrous, ovate-oblong, shorter than mature perigynia, apex long-acuminate, glabrous.

1.5–2.5 mm.

spikes 4–5, 1 per node;

proximal spikes well separated, nodding or drooping at maturity, pistillate with 10–40 perigynia about 1 mm apart, cylindric, 10–35 × 8–10 mm;

distal spikes crowded near apex, sessile or nearly so, staminate or androgynous, linear, less than 20 mm.

spike staminate or rarely with a few perigynia at base, 10–20 × 1.5–2 mm.

= 42.