Flora of North America species comparison

20–90 cm;

vegetative culms inconspicuous with few leaves clustered at apex.

bluntly angled, smooth or slightly serrulate on 1 angle distally, 10–30 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.

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.

with pistillate heads 2–4 cm wide;

proximal spikes appressed to ascending.

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.

appressed-ascending to ascending, with shallowly erose wing 0.4–0.6 mm wide, base acute;

beak ± falcate, 3–5 mm from apex to achene, apex notched 0.4–0.6 mm adaxially.

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

4–7 × 1.5–2.5 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 green or gold with distal margins white or pale gold, 0.7–1 mm wide, apex long- or short-tapered with awn to 6–12 mm.

4–6.5 mm.

= 68, 70.