Flora of North America species comparison

20–100 cm;

vegetative culms with few leaves clustered at apex.

15–50 cm, distally slightly scabrous.

sheath summits U-shaped;

distal ligules 2.3–4.8 mm;

blades 3–5 per fertile culm, 10–32 cm × 1.4–3(–3.5) mm.

2–4 mm wide.

arching or nodding, dense or open, green, yellow, or brown at maturity, 1.5–6 cm × 5–20 mm;

proximal internode 2–12 mm; 2d internode 2–13 mm;

proximal bracts scalelike, with bristle tip.

proximal bracts shorter than or exceeding inflorescences;

spikes separate, short-oblong or elongate, 7–20 × 4.5–8 mm;

proximal spikes often distant, spreading or pendent, very long-pendunculate;

distal spikes erect, pedunculate;

lateral (1–)2–3(–4) spikes pistillate, of similar length;

terminal spike staminate or with perigynia, neither wholly gynecandrous or androgynous.

3–10, distinct, ellipsoid, 7–16 × 3–9(–13) mm, base acute to short-attenuate, apex acute to rounded.

ascending or rarely widely spreading, golden brown, conspicuously 5-veined on each face or fewer adaxially, winged to base, lanceolate, flat except over achene, 4.2–6.8 × 1.2–2 mm, length at least 3 times width, 0.35–0.55 mm thick, margin flat, including wing 0.2–0.6 mm wide;

beak pale to golden-brown at tip, flattish, ciliate-serrulate, abaxial suture with white or golden brown hyaline margin, distance from beak tip to achene 2.2–4.8 mm.

spreading, green or golden, becoming brown, veinless, elliptic, 2.5–3.5 × 1.5–1.75 mm, apex beakless or abruptly beaked, papillose;

beak to 0.2–0.3 mm, truncate, smooth.

ovate or elliptic, 1.3–1.7 × 0.7–0.9 mm, 0.3–0.4 mm thick.

nearly filling body of perigynia.

scales hyaline brown, occasionally with green or gold midstripe, lanceolate, 3.4–4 mm, shorter and narrower than perigynia, apex acuminate.

scales brown with hyaline margins, lanceolate, shorter and narrower than perigynia, midvein lighter colored than body, often raised, prominent.

= 52.