Flora of North America species comparison

20–90 cm;

vegetative culms inconspicuous with few leaves clustered at apex.

densely tufted, central, ascending or lax, 24–82 cm × 0.8–1.6 mm.

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.

basal sheaths light brown to brown;

sheaths green or yellow-green, 2–26 mm;

blades ascending, green or yellow-green, midrib well developed abaxially, 2 lateral veins well developed adaxially, flat, 18–44 cm × 12–14 mm, blade of overwintering leaves smooth abaxially.

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.

peduncles of proximal spikes 0–12 cm, arising in proximal 1/3 of culm, distal lateral spikes not exerted;

peduncles of terminal spike 0–2.8 cm;

bracts 8–21 × 0.5–4 mm, blade of distal lateral spike linear, narrower than spikes;

widest bract blade of distalmost lateral spike 0.5–3.4 mm wide.

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

3(–4) per culm;

lateral spikes 6–9(–15) × 4–6 mm, distal ones separate;

terminal spike 11–35 × 1.8–3 mm, exceeding distal lateral spike.

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.

4–20 per spike, closely to loosely overlapping, ratio of longer lateral spike length to perigynia number 0.8–3.4, aggregated, spreading, finely, conspicuously (22–)25–32-veined, narrowly elongate ovate, 3.5–5.5 × 1.2–1.6 mm, 1.9–2.3 times as long as achene bodies;

beak excurved, 0.5–1.7 mm.

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

elongate-obovoid, 2.2–3.2 × 1–1.4 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 2–2.5 × 0.8–1.2 mm, apex acute.

scales 3.2–4.2 × 1–1.2 mm, margins hyaline or brown tinged, apex acute.

3.8–4 mm.

= 68, 70.

= 48.