Flora of North America species comparison

20–90 cm, 1.7–2.2 mm wide basally, 0.7–1.1 mm wide distally.

14–30 cm.

sheaths tight, green, sometimes white spotted, fronts hyaline, sometimes transversely rugose, mouth yellowish and thickened;

ligules to 3 mm, usually wider than long;

widest leaf blades 2–4 mm wide, papillose adaxially.

sheaths adaxially white-hyaline, summits U-shaped;

distal ligules (1–)2–2.5 mm;

blades 2–5(–8) per fertile culm, usually folded, 10.5–15 × 1–2.5 mm.

with 3–10 spikes, 1.5–4 cm × 8–12 mm;

proximal internodes equaling or shorter than proximal spikes;

proximal bracts less than 2 cm;

spikes with 8–20 ascending or spreading perigynia.

dense or ± open, gold to brown, 1.4–3 cm × 5–11 mm;

proximal internode (2.5–)3.5–6 mm; 2d internode 0.8–3.5 mm;

proximal bracts usually bristlelike, shorter than inflorescences.

4–9, aggregated or distant, individually indistinct or distinct, lanceloid to ovoid, 5–11 × 2.5–6 mm, base and apex acute to attenuate.

pale green to yellow-brown, 9–15-veined abaxially, margins serrulate distally;

beak 0.2–1.2mm, apical teeth 0.2–0.5 mm.

appressed-ascending to ascending, gold or whitish, boat-shaped with wings adaxially incurved, conspicuously (0–)5–10-veined abaxially, conspicuously 0–6-veined adaxially, lanceolate or occasionally ovate, plano-convex, 3.5–4.2 × 1–1.2 mm, 0.4–0.5(–0.6) mm thick, margin flat, including wing 0.05–0.2 mm wide, ciliate-serrulate at least on distal body;

beak gold to reddish or brown, white-hyaline at tip, cylindric, unwinged, entire for 0.3–0.6 mm, abaxial suture with conspicuous white margin, distance from beak tip to achene 1.5–2.2 mm, beak tip conspicuous in inflorescences.

suborbiculate, 1.9–2.2 × 1.9–2.1 mm.

ovate to obovate, 1.4–1.8 × 0.7–0.95 mm, 0.35–0.4 mm thick.

scales hyaline with green, 3-veined center, ovate to ovate-circular, body narrower than and 2/3 to length of perigynium, apex acute or with awn 0.5–1.5(–2) mm.

scales gold to red-brown, often with whitish or green to gold midstripe or white tip, ovate to broadly ovate, (3–)3.5–5 mm, usually longer and wider than perignyium bodies, margin white, 0.1–0.3 mm wide, apex obtuse to acuminate.

1.5–2.3 mm.