Flora of North America species comparison

25–60(–85) cm;

vegetative culms with few leaves clustered at apex.

20–80 cm, 1–1.6 mm wide basally, 0.5–0.8 mm wide distally.

sheaths adaxially white-hyaline, summits U-shaped;

distal ligules 1.5–6 mm;

blades (2–)3–4(–5) per fertile culm, 7–22 cm × 2–4 mm.

sheaths tight, green, fronts hyaline;

ligules less than 2 mm, wider than long;

widest leaf blades 1.5–2.5 mm wide, papillose adaxially.

erect, usually dense, green, gold, or dark brown, 1.8–3 cm8–14 mm;

proximal internode 2–3(–5) mm; 2d internode 1–3 mm;

proximal bracts bristlelike, shorter than or equaling inflorescences.

with 3–10 spikes, 1.5–5 cm × 5–8 mm;

proximal internodes slightly shorter than to 2 times as long as proximal spikes;

proximal bracts 1–5 cm;

spikes with to 10 erect perigynia.

6–14, distant, distinct, ovoid to broadly ovoid, 8–10 × 4.5–6.5 mm, base and apex acute to truncate.

ascending, white to gold or light brown, 0–5-veined abaxially, 0–4-veined adaxially, narrowly lanceolate to narrowly ovate, flat except over achene or, occasionally, plano-convex, 3.4–4.1(–4.7) × 0.9–1.3 mm, 0.15–0.35 mm thick, margin flat, including wing 0.1–0.2 mm wide, usually crinkled distally;

beak brown or red-brown at tip, flat, ± ciliate-serrulate, abaxial suture inconspicuous, distance from beak tip to achene (1.8–)2.1–3 mm.

pale green to pale brown, veinless or veined, 3.5–5 × 1.5–2 mm, base slightly spongy, thickened, margins serrulate distally;

beak 1–3 mm, apical teeth 0.3–0.6 mm.

straight, 0.05 mm wide.

± elliptic, 1.1–1.5 × 0.6–0.8 mm, 0.15–0.35 mm thick;

style usually persistent, sinuate.

elliptic-circular, 2–2.4 × 1.4–1.7 mm.

scales gold to dark brown, with whitish, green, or brown midstripe, lanceolate, 3–3.8 mm, shorter and narrower than perigynia, apex acuminate to short-awned.

scales brown with green midvein, ovate, 3.3–5.2 × 2–2.8 mm, body as long as and wider than perigynium, apex awned, awn less than 1 mm.

1.9–2.4 mm.

= 52, ca. 66, 70.