Flora of North America species comparison

erect or ascending, 7–52 cm × 0.5–1 mm.

25–80 cm;

vegetative culms few, inconspicuous, usually fewer than 15 leaves, not strikingly 3-ranked.

basal sheaths white or light brown;

nonbasal sheaths green, 8–37 mm;

blades green, 8–44 cm × 0.8–5 mm, shorter than or overtopping culm, 0.5–1.3(–1.8) times as tall as tallest flowering culm;

blades of vegetative shoots 1–3.5 times wider than bract blades.

sheaths conspicuously green-veined nearly to collar, narrow hyaline band or sharp Y-shaped region at collar, adaxially firm, summits U-shaped, sheaths sometimes finely papillose;

distal ligules 2.4–5.6 mm;

blades 2–5 per fertile culm, 10–25 cm × 2–5 mm.

2.2–11.4 cm × 1–3 mm.

spikes (2–)4 per culm, scattered;

peduncles of pistillate spikes 0.5–10.2 cm; of staminate spike 0.4–8.7 cm.

dense to open, green or brown, 1.5–4 cm × 10–20 mm;

proximal internode 2–12 mm; 2d internode 3–10 mm;

proximal bracts scalelike, with bristle tips shorter than inflorescences.

3–6, distant, distinct, ellipsoid to ovoid-globose, 8–20 × 6–10 mm, base rounded or short-acute, apex broadly obtuse to rounded.

3–9 per spike, finely veined, obovoid, 2–4.2 × 1.2–1.8 mm;

beak tapering.

15–80 in larger spikes, spreading, light to dark brown, inconspicuously or shortly veined on each face, broadly elliptic or orbiculate to sharply obovate, flat except over achene, 4–6.1 × 3–4.4 mm, 0.45–0.6 mm thick, sometimes nearly leathery, base rounded, margin flat, including wing 0.7–1.5 mm wide, smooth;

beak spreading, light brown at tip, flat, 0.7–1.6(–1.8) mm, 1/3 length of body, ciliate-serrulate, abaxial suture with hyaline, pale brown margin, distance from beak tip to achene 2–3 mm.

slender, ascending through entire orifice.

obovoid, 1.8–2.8 × 1–1.6 mm, sides plane or slightly concave at maturity, tightly fitting perigynia.

oblong, 1.5–2 × 0.9–1.2 mm, 0.3–0.5 mm thick.

spikes: proximal usually basal, erect, ascending, or drooping, short to long pedunclulate, 6–18 × 4–5 mm.; pistillate scales keeled, 1.8–2 × 1–1.2 mm, midribs green, margins hyaline, apex acute, proximal scales of lateral spikes subtending perigyinia.

scales white-hyaline or brown with pale brown or green 1-veined midstripe, lanceolate, 3.3–4 mm, as long as and narrower than perignyia, apex acute or obtuse.

spike 1, linear to linear-clavate, 11–24 × (1–)1.2–2.7 mm.; staminate scales oblong, 2–3.6(–5.5) × 1–1.5 mm, midribs green, margins hyaline, frequently brown tinged, apex acute.

2–3.3 mm.

= 33+III.

= 68, 70.