Flora of North America species comparison

30–80 cm.

20–100 cm;

vegetative culms with few leaves clustered at apex.

3–5.7 mm wide, glabrous.

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.

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.

1–2(–3), erect;

lateral spikes, if present, usually pistillate;

terminal spike gynecandrous; staminate portion 5–18 × 1–3.5 mm; pistillate portion ovate or oblong, 11–35 × 12–20 mm.

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

widely radiating, the proximal reflexed, 5.8–9.7 × 1.9–3.3 mm, smooth;

beak 2.1–3.8 mm, usually smooth.

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.

sides often flat, 2.3–3 × 1.1–1.4 mm, 1.9–2.5 times as long as wide;

style persistent, sinuous.

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

scales 3–4.5 × 0.5–1.1 mm, apex sharply acute or with short, scabrous awn, hidden by perigynia.

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

scales 3.5–7.1 × 1–2 mm, apex acute, sharp or blunt.

= 56.