Flora of North America species comparison

0.8–1.9 mm thick, shoots often arising 2–several per cluster, many nodes without shoots.

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

bluntly trigonous, (8–)15–40 cm, smooth-angled distally.

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.

basal sheaths pale to dark brown;

sheaths with hyaline inner band, apex not prolonged, glabrous;

ligules 0–2.8 mm;

blades 1–3(–3.5) mm wide.

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.

dense, headlike, 1.2–3.5(–4.5) cm, 1/2+ as wide as long (if pistillate);

spikes 6–20(–25), usually unisexual; staminate spikes lanceoloid; pistillate spikes ovoid.

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.

brown, essentially veinless, usually stipitate, ovate to broadly elliptic, ± plano-convex, (3–)3.5–4.2(–4.8) × 1.2–2.1 mm, dull;

beak (0.9–)1.2–1.9 mm, apex hyaline, friable, oblique or obscurely bidentulate.

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

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 pale brown to ± whitish hyaline, hyaline margins, lanceolate to ovate, (4.3–)4.7–7.5 mm, apex acute to acuminate, satiny to ± dull.

1.5–3 mm.

(2.5–)2.8–3.9 mm, apiculus bristly (30X).