Flora of North America species comparison

1–3, trigonous to roundly trigonous, (30–)40–65(–95) cm × (1–)2–3 mm.

roundly trigonous, basally with dark fibrous remnants of old leaf sheaths, (0.5–)4–30 cm × 0.4 –1.1 mm, glabrous.

(1–)5–10, V-shaped, (10–)30–45(–70) cm × 3–7 mm.

1–5, flat, involute toward apex, 3–18 cm × 1–2.5(–3) mm.

heads loosely to densely globose-ovoid, (6–)10–12(–20) mm diam.;

rays 6–10(–12), 1–8(–12) cm; 2d order rays 1–4, 5–15(–23) mm;

bracts (5–)6–8(–10), ascending at 45–60(–75)°, V-shaped, (5–)15–40(–55) cm × (1–)3–7 mm.

heads hemispheric to spheric, (3–)6–15(–24) mm diam.;

rays absent;

bracts 2–5, horizontal to reflexed, parallel to culm, 1–13 cm × 1–3 mm, margins and keel sparsely minutely scabridulous distally.

(1–)30–50(–65), greenish white, linear to broadly ellipsoid, flattened, 4–6.5 × 1.8–3.2 mm;

floral scales (10–)16–20(–26), laterally clear, pale green, off-white, or light brown, medially green or light brown, laterally weakly 1-ribbed, medially 2-ribbed, basally 2-keeled, oblong-lanceolate, (1.2–)1.4–1.6(–1.8) × (0.7–)0.8–1 mm, apex acute, mucronate, distally glabrous or scabridulous.

(5–)20–60(–100), whitish to greenish or brownish, ovoid to oblong-lanceoloid, compressed, 3–7 × 2–4 mm;

floral scales (8–)10–12(–24), laterally milky white (infrequently yellowish, pale greenish, brown, or bronze-white), medially green or white, laterally ribless, medially 3-ribbed, ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 1.6–3(–3.4) × 0.8–1.3 mm, apex mucronate to acuminate.

stamen 1;

anthers ellipsoid, 0.6–0.7 mm, connective apex acute, 0.1–0.2 mm;

styles 0.2–0.4 mm;

stigmas 0.4–0.6 mm.

stamens 3;

anthers linear, (0.4–)0.6–0.8(–1.1) mm, connective not prolonged;

styles 0.8–1.8 mm;

stigmas (0.5–)1–1.5(–2) mm.

brown, stipitate, ellipsoid to narrowly ellipsoid, broadly rounded or contracted basally, gradually tapered toward apex, 0.9–1.1 × 0.3–0.4 mm, stipe 0.1 mm, apex acute, surfaces finely reticulate.

brown to blackish, trigonous, broadly obovoid, 0.5–1 × 0.3–0.75 mm, base slightly stipelike, ± cuneate to rounded, apex apiculate, papillose.