Flora of North America species comparison

10–90(–135) cm.

18–66 cm.

3–6 per culm;

sheaths tight, inner band hyaline, 1.8–2.5 cm, apex concave, glabrous;

ligules 0.6–2.5(–4.5) mm, rounded to ± acute;

blades plicate, 5–40 cm × 0.7–3.3(–3.8) mm, widest leaf 1–3.3(–3.8) mm wide.

sheaths adaxially white-hyaline, often tinged brown distally, summits U-shaped or rounded, sometimes prolonged beyond collar;

distal ligules 1–3(–4.5) mm;

blades 3–6 per fertile culm, 10–30(–45) cm × 1.5–3.7(–4.9) mm.

0.7–7.8 cm;

spikes (2–)3–8;

lateral spikes pistillate often with few staminate flowers proximally, 3–15.5 mm, sessile, staminate portion 7-flowered, to 8.2 mm, pistillate portion 3–32-flowered, 2.5–11 mm;

basal 2 spikes 1.7–42 mm apart;

terminal spike gynecandrous, 5–24 mm, staminate portion 2–17-flowered, 2–16.5 × 0.9–2 mm, pistillate portion 4–26-flowered, 2.6–9 × 4.9–9.1 mm.

dense or open, brown and green, 1.2–2.2 cm × (6–)9–18 mm;

proximal internode 1–3 mm; 2d internode 1–2 mm, these 2 internodes collectively less than 1/3 as long as inflorescences;

proximal bracts bristlelike, shorter than inflorescences.

4–9, distinct or densely aggregated and individually indistinct, usually ovoid to broadly ovoid, 4.4–10.8 × 2.7–8.4 mm, base and apex acute to rounded.

spreading to reflexed, castaneous to dark brown, 2–14-veined abaxially, 0–12-veined adaxially over achene, lanceolate to ovate, (2.65–)2.9–4.75 × 0.8–2.1 mm, (1.7–)1.8–3.2(–3.6) times as long as wide;

beak (0.85–)0.95–2 mm, (0.4–)0.45–0.86 length of body, serrulate, teeth (0–)0.15–0.5 mm.

appressed-ascending to ascending-spreading, red-brown, coppery, or chestnut, conspicuously (5–)7–10-veined abaxially, conspicuously 3–8-veined adaxially, veins reaching top of achene, elliptic to lance-ovate, plano-convex to biconvex or, sometimes, flat around achene, (2.9–)3.6–5.4 × 1–2.1 mm, 0.4–0.5(–0.6) mm thick, margin flat, including wing usually 0.2–0.3 mm wide, often incurved adaxially, perigynia then boat-shaped, ciliate-serrulate on distal body;

beak coppery or dark brown at tip, occasionally narrowly flattened, cylindric, unwinged, usually less than 1 mm, ± entire for 0.5–0.8 mm, abaxial suture usually with conspicuous white margin, distance from beak tip to achene (1.6–)2–2.3 mm.

ovate-lanceolate to rhombic-ovate, 1.3–2.1 × 0.8–1.55 mm.

narrowly compressed elliptic to ovate-quadrate, 1.2–1.8 × 0.7–1.1 mm, (0.3–)0.4–0.5 mm thick.

scales ovate, (1.4–)2.1–3.1 × 0.7–2.3 mm, apex acute to sometimes obtuse.

scales red-brown or chestnut to coppery, with green, gold, or light brown midstripe, usually ovate, 2.4–3.9 mm, shorter than perigynia, width less than or equal to perigynia, margin white, 0–0.05 mm wide, apex obtuse to acuminate.

scales ovate-lanceolate to ovate, 1.3–3.8 × 0.8–1.7 mm, base clavate, apex acute.

0.8–1.6(–2) mm.

= 58.