Flora of North America species comparison

to 90 cm × 2 mm, scabrous.

30–100 cm.

sheath fronts spotted red-brown, veinless, plane, apex truncate to convex, membranous;

ligule rounded, to 1 mm, free limb to 0.2 mm;

blades to 75 cm × 6 mm, shorter than flowering stem.

sheaths papillose, summits U-shaped;

distal ligules 2.1–4.6 mm;

blades 3–4 per fertile culm, 18–23 cm × 2–4 mm.

loosely paniculate, 4–12 cm × 15–20 mm, with 10–20 branches proximal branches distinct; the proximal internode to 25 mm;

bracts scalelike, not conspicuous, the awn, when present, 15–50 mm.

stiffly erect, open, coppery brown, 1.5–3.4 cm × 6–15 mm;

proximal internode (1–)3–6(–9) mm; 2d internode 1–4 mm;

proximal bracts usually scalelike, occasionally bristlelike.

(3–)5–6(–10), distant, individually distinct, rhomboid-ovoid, 5–10 × 3–7 mm, base and apex tapered.

dark brown-black, 3–5-veined abaxially, 0–3-veined adaxially, body ovate to lanceolate, 3–4.5 × 1.5–2 mm, base rounded to cordate, conspicuous basal spongy tissue somewhat distending perigynium;

beak 1–1.5 mm.

ascending, light green to straw colored, pearlescent, often with adaxial reddish brown blotch, conspicuously 7–15-veined abaxially, usually inconspicuously or conspicuously (6–) 9–12-veined adaxially, lanceolate, plano-convex, 2.9–4.3 × 0.9–1.4 mm, 0.6 mm thick, margin flat, including wing 0.07–0.4 mm wide, unwinged below median;

beak brown, white-hyaline at tip, flat, ciliate-serrulate, abaxial suture conspicuous, often with narrow white-hyaline margin, distance from beak tip to achene 1.5–2.4 mm.

red-brown, ovate, 1.2–1.5 × 1–1.2 mm, glossy;

style base cylindric.

ovate, 1.3–1.6 × 0.7-1.4 mm, 0.3–0.5 mm thick.

hyaline, red-brown or pale brown, margins colorless, broad, shining, apex acute or mucronate.

with prominent apiculus to 0.5 mm.

scales mid to dark brown, usually with pale midstripe, glossy, lanceolate, (3–)3.5–3.7(–4) mm, subequal to perigynia in length and width, margin white-hyaline, to 0.15 mm wide, apex acute.

= 74.