Flora of North America species comparison

20–90 cm;

vegetative culms inconspicuous with few leaves clustered at apex.

10–95 cm.

sheaths white-hyaline or green-veined, sometimes papillose, summits U-shaped, not distally expanded;

distal ligules 2.2–6 mm;

blades 3–4 per fertile culm, 11–25 cm × 1.7–4.2 mm.

3–5 per culm;

sheaths tight, inner band hyaline, 1.8–13 cm, apex concave, glabrous;

ligule of distalmost leaf obtuse to rounded, 0.6–2.2 mm;

blades plicate, 6–31 cm × 0.6–2.4(–2.7) mm, widest leaf 1–2.4(–2.7) mm wide.

mostly dense, brown, 1.1–3 cm × 5–14 mm;

proximal internode 1–4 mm; 2d internode 1.4–3.4 mm;

proximal bracts scalelike, with bristle tips shorter than inflorescences.

0.8–3.7 cm;

spikes 2–5(–7);

lateral spikes pistillate often with few staminate flowers proximally, 3–9.5 mm, sessile, staminate portion 3-flowered, to 2.2 mm, pistillate portion 3–18-flowered, 2.3–8 mm;

basal 2 spikes 2.1–11 mm apart;

terminal spike 5.2–20 mm, gynecandrous, staminate portion 3–10-flowered, 2.2–14.5 × 0.7–1.4 mm, pistillate portion 4–16-flowered, 3–7 × 4–5.8 mm.

3–10, usually overlapping, ovoid to globose, 4–10 × 3–7 mm, base rounded or truncate, apex rounded.

ascending to ascending-spreading, light to dark reddish brown, conspicuously 3+-veined abaxially, faintly or basally 1–3-veined adaxially, winged to base, ovate or elliptic, plano-convex, 2.5–3.8 × (1–)1.2–2 mm, 0.35–0.45 mm thick, 1.9–2.5 times as long as wide, margin flat, including wing 0.2–0.5 mm wide, 1b ciliate-serrulate at least distally;

beak reddish brown at tip, flat, ± ciliate-serrulate, abaxial suture with reddish brown-hyaline margin, distance from beak tip to achene 1.2–2.2 mm.

spreading to reflexed, castaneous to dark brown, 4–12-veined abaxially, sometimes faintly, 0(–6)-veined adaxially over achene, ovate, often convexly tapered from widest point to beak, forming a “shoulder,” 1.95–3(–3.3) × 1.1–1.8 mm, 1.4–2(–2.2) times as long as wide;

beak 0.4–0.95 mm, 0.18–0.44 length of body, setulose-serrulate, teeth 0.15–0.4 mm.

ovate or elliptic, 1–1.3 × 0.6–0.9 mm, 0.3–0.4 mm thick.

ovate, 1.2–1.8 × 0.95–1.5 mm.

scales reddish brown, usually with green or whitish to brown midstripe, lanceolate, 2.5–3.5 mm, shorter and narrower than perigynia, apex acuminate or acute.

scales ovate, 1.2–2.1(–2.4) × 1–1.6 mm, apex obtuse.

scales ovate, 1.4–2.9 × 1–1.3 mm, base clavate, apex obtuse to acute.

0.6–1.4 mm.

= 68, 70.