Flora of North America species comparison

(20–)30–100 cm, 2.5–8 mm wide basally, 0.7–1.6 mm wide distally.

30–100 cm.

sheaths usually loose, proximally green-and-white-striped, not white spotted, with conspicuous transverse veins on back, fronts hyaline, sometimes transversely rugose and red dotted, thin, white or hyaline and fragile at mouth;

ligules 2–7 mm, shorter to longer than wide;

widest leaf blades (3–)4–8 mm wide.

sheaths papillose, summits U-shaped;

distal ligules 3.5–5 mm;

blades 4–5 per fertile culm, green, without auricles, 17–37 cm × 2–5 mm, pliable.

with 5–15 spikes, 1–5 cm × 8–15 mm, occasionally compound, then somewhat larger;

proximal bracts to 3 cm;

spikes with 5–15 ascending to spreading perigynia;

proximal internodes shorter than to 1.5 times as long as proximal spikes.

arching or nodding from proximal spike, open at least proximally, silvery greenish yellow, 2.5–6.5 cm × 7–17 mm;

proximal internode 7–18 mm; 2d internode 3–10 mm; often aristate or long-aristate;

proximal bracts scalelike.

(3–)7–15, widely spaced except the distal densely aggregated, proximal 1 often stalked, nearly globose or ovoid, 6–17 × 4.5–7 mm, base clavate or attenuate, apex rounded.

pale green to pale brown, veinless or 3–7(–12)-veined abaxially, rarely veined adaxially, 3.5–5.5 × 2–3 mm, body somewhat spongy, base thickened, margins serrulate distally;

beak 0.6–1.6 mm, apical teeth 0.3–1 mm.

ascending to spreading, uniformly pale green to straw colored, conspicuously, evenly (4–)5–8(–10)-veined on each face, ovate to obovate, plano-convex, 3–4.5 × 1.9–2.3 mm, 0.6 mm thick, usually widest at 2/5–1/2 total length, margin flat, including wing 0.2–0.6 mm wide, finely granular-papillose;

beak whitish at tip, flat, ciliate-serrulate to within 0.3 mm of tip, abaxial suture inconspicuous, distance from beak tip to achene 1.2–2 mm.

circular to elliptic- circular, 1.8–2.1 × 1.6–2 mm.

oblong-ovate, 1.5–1.75 × 1–1.2 mm, 1.4–1.6 times as long as wide, 0.5 mm thick.

scales hyaline or brown with green, 1–3-veined center, ovate, 2.6–4.4 × 1.3–2.4 mm, body shorter to slightly longer than perigynium, apex acuminate to short-awned.

scales silvery pale green with pale or green midstripe, lance-subulate, (3.2–)3.5–4.1(–4.6) mm, shorter and narrower than or equaling perigynia, margin white-hyaline, to 0.6 mm wide, apex acute.

1.5–3 mm.

= 80.