Flora of North America species comparison

10–90(–135) cm.

60–115 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 green-veined at least in proximal 1/2, Y-shaped white-hyaline band extending at least 10 mm proximal to collar, firm, summits rounded, usually prolonged to 3–9 mm beyond collar;

distal ligules (1.5–)3–13 mm;

blades 4–5(–6) per fertile culm, 20–45 cm × 4–7 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.

proximal branches often bearing more than 1 spike, open or dense, green to pale gold, 3.5–8 cm × 10–16 mm;

proximal internode 3–18 mm; 2d internode 3–9 mm;

proximal bracts bristlelike, shorter than inflorescences or occasionally leaflike.

11–35, distant or aggregated, individually distinct or indistinct, lanceoloid to broadly ovoid, 10–18 × 5–7 mm, base acute to attenuate, apex rounded to tapered.

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.

ascending to spreading, green to gold, conspicuously 8–11-veined abaxially, conspicuously 5–8-veined adaxially, ovate, plano-convex, 2.9–4(–4.8) × 1–1.7 mm, 0.5 mm thick, margin flat, including wing 0.1–0.2(–0.3) mm wide, ciliate-serrulate at least distally;

beak gold or white at tip, usually cylindric, sometimes falcate, unwinged, ± entire for 0.1–0.5 mm, abaxial suture usually inconspicuous, distance from beak tip to achene 1.3–2(–2.8) mm.

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

ovate to elliptic, 1.3–1.6 × 0.8–1.2 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 white-hyaline or gold, occasionally tinged brownish or green, with green to gold midstripe, lanceolate or ovate, (2.8–)3.6–4.5 mm, shorter or longer and narrower than perigynia, apex long-acuminate to awned.

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.