Flora of North America species comparison

dark maroon at base; flowering stems 0.5–1.1 mm thick, 20–90 cm, much longer than leaves at maturity, glabrous, but often scabrous within inflorescence.

straight, (40–)65–110(–125) cm, tallest culms 65–125 cm.

sheaths glabrous or short-pubescent, basal few bladeless and maroon, others grading from maroon to green on back, pale brown-hyaline, red dotted and sometimes pubescent near apex;

blades flat, 3–9 mm wide, glabrous, minutely scabrous on margins distally.

of flowering stems shorter than culms, to 28 cm × 1.8–3.8 mm;

ligules on distal cauline leaves truncate or rounded.

peduncles of lateral spikes slender, to 40 mm, equaling spikes or usually somewhat shorter, scabrous;

peduncle of terminal spike to 13 mm, glabrous or scabrous;

proximal bracts shorter than inflorescences;

sheaths 20–25 mm;

blades 3–4 mm wide.

peduncles of terminal staminate spikes (3–)10–60(–102) mm, 0.7–2.5 length of staminate spikes;

bracts 5–25 cm × 1.2–2.5 mm, 0.5–1.3(–1.9) times as long as inflorescences;

inner band of sheaths usually concave or truncate (occasionally convex).

proximal pistillate spikes 1–2(–3), distant, sessile or short-pedunculate, globose to ellipsoid or short-cylindric, 7–27 × 8–11 mm;

terminal staminate spikes pedunculate, (9–)17–39 × 1.4–2.5 mm.

green, usually red dotted, 2-ribbed and finely 8–12-veined, veins more obvious near base, ellipsoid to oblong-ovoid, loosely enveloping achenes, 2–3.7 × 1.3–1.6 mm, membranous, acute at base, tapering gradually to acute beakless apex, glabrous.

reflexed, yellow to yellowish green, (3.5–)3.9–5.2(–5.8) × 1.4–2.2 mm, apex abruptly narrowed;

beak forming angle greater than 20° with body, 1.4–2.2 mm, sparsely scabrous or, occasionally, smooth.

substipitate, 1.2–2.6 × 1–1.2 mm.

1.4–1.9 × 1.2–1.5 mm.

spikes 2–5, 1 per node, well separated, drooping at maturity, pistillate with 10–45 perigynia attached 2 mm apart, linear, 10–70 × 2–3.5 mm.

spike gynecandrous, 10–60 × 1–3 mm.

scales white-hyaline tinged with chestnut, broad green midrib often red dotted, sometimes scabrous, ovate to oblong, shorter than mature perigynia, apex rounded or cuspidate with ciliate awn less than 1 mm, otherwise glabrous.

pistillate scales pale yellowish green, inconspicuous among perigynia, 2.1–3.3 × 0.9–1.3 mm;

staminate scales reddish brown to pale brown, narrowly obovate to narrowly oblong, 2.9–5.6 × 1.2–1.9 mm, margins wide, pale hyaline, apex obtuse to acute.

2.1–3.6 mm.

= 50, 52, 54.