Flora of North America species comparison

10–90(–135) cm.

sparingly purple-red to 2.7–5.2(–5.6) cm high at base, 14–37 cm;

longest vegetative shoots 23–45 cm, (0.8–)1.4–1.6 times as tall as culms.

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.

nonbasal sheaths glabrous;

blades green, widest blades 2.6–4 mm wide, smooth abaxially.

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.

19–34 cm, (0.88–)0.94–0.99 of culm height;

internode between proximalmost scales in proximalmost spike 3–4.3 mm;

internode between distal lateral spikes (1–)2.6–12 cm;

longest internode (per plant) between distal lateral spikes 5.2–12 cm;

peduncle of terminal spike 3.1–54(–73) mm, longest per plant 17–54(–73) mm;

proximal bract sheaths tight, apex concave or truncate;

ligules 1–4.9(–9.6) mm;

blades uniformly green, blade of distalmost lateral bract exceeding terminal spike, longest (per plant) bract blade of distalmost lateral spike 6.1–15 cm.

4–5 spikes, widely separate or distal 2–3 spikes overlapping, proximalmost spike usually basal;

lateral spikes pistillate, with 2–8 perigynia, longest spikes per plant with 5–8, 11–17 × 4.5–8.5 mm, ratio of longest lateral spike length (in mm) to flower number = 2.2–2.4;

terminal spike 8–35 × 1.4–2.5 mm, longest per plant 14–35 mm, exceeding distlmost lateral spike.

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.

distichously imbricate, prominently 48–63-veined, obovate or narrowly obovate, obtusely trigonous in cross section, (3.7–) 3.9–5 × 1.6–2(–2.1) mm, 2.1–2.5(–2.7) times as long as wide, 1.5–2 times as long as achene bodies, base gradually tapered, apex contracted;

beak straight or excurved 10–30°, (0.4–)0.6–1 mm, 0.08–0.21 of perigynium length.

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

, 2.6–3.4 × 1.4–1.9 mm, body 2–2.6 mm, tightly enveloped by perigynia;

stipe straight, 0.2–0.5(–0.7) mm;

beak straight, (0.1)–0.2(–0.3) mm.

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

scales 3.6–5.7 × 1.8–2.1(–2.4) mm, body (2.2–)2.5–3 mm, midrib prolonged as awn 01–3.2 mm.

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

scales 4.3–5.8 × 1.4–1.9 mm, apex usually acute, occasionally obtuse, awnless.

0.8–1.6(–2) mm.

3.8–4.2 mm.

= 58.