Flora of North America species comparison

3–6 cm (fl), elongating to 6–100 cm (fr).

easily compressed, to 120 cm × 7 mm, scabrous.

sheaths adaxially strongly copper colored distally, truncate to convex at mouth, prolonged 2–8 mm beyond base of blade;

ligules 1.2–5.8(–9.2) mm;

foliage leaf blades 6–50 cm × 2–3 mm.

sheaths usually all with blades, green;

fronts rugose, indistinctly linearly veined, apex colorless, fragile, convex, not forming extension, erose;

ligules acute, 10 mm, free limb to 0.8 mm;

blades not epistomic, to 100 cm × 15 mm.

bisexual or, sometimes, nearly or wholly unisexual, flexuous and interrupted, proximal 1–5 branches often separated, decompound, 3–8(–9) × (0.4–)0.8–1.8 cm;

basal branch with (2–)4–10 spikes;

proximal internode 7–26(–33) mm.

densely spicate, elongate, cylindric, with 15–25 distinguishable branches, 5–15 × 4 cm;

proximal internode to 10 mm.

appressed or ascending, straw colored to light or dark brown, strongly 6–9-veined abaxially, with or without median lengthwise groove near base, sometimes membranous flap toward apex, lance-ovate (body ovate to very widely ovate) in outline, plano-convex, (2.1–)2.3–3(–3.3) × (1–)1.1–1.4 mm, dull;

beak 0.8–1.4 mm.

pale brown with red-brown veins, 15-veined abaxially, 7-veined adaxially, to 6 × 2 mm, base distended proximally, cordate;

stipe to 0.4 mm;

beak to 3.5 mm, serrulate.

broadly or very broadly trullate-ovate in outline, 1.2–1.6 × 0.7–1 mm.

ovate, to 2 × 1.5 mm;

stalk to 0.3 mm;

persistent style base cylindric.

scales light reddish brown, 2.4–3.3 × (1.1–)1.4–2.1 mm, as wide as or wider than perigynia.

hyaline.

= 66.