Flora of North America species comparison

terete, 45–100 cm × (3.2–)5–9.4 mm, soft to firm, sometimes septate-nodulose proximally, not distally, internally hollow with complete transverse septa, closer together near the spikelet, evident externally;

plants never forming filiform, flaccid culms.

mostly ascending, terete or 4-angled, 2 cm × 0.2–0.3 mm, soft.

distal leaf sheaths persistent, membranous to thinly papery, apex acute to acuminate.

distal leaf sheaths persistent, greenish to whitish, translucent, membranous, apex blunt.

not proliferous, (20–)40–62 × 4–7 mm;

rachilla joints bearing prominent wing-like remnants of floral scales;

proximal scale empty, amplexicaulous, (3–)3.5–5 mm;

floral scales 115–220, 1–3 per mm of rachilla, stramineous to pale brown, usually with pale to dark brown submarginal band, midrib region sometimes greenish, obovate to broadly oblong, (4–)4.5–5 × 2.8–4 mm, cartilaginous, often membranous toward margins, margins broadly translucent, membranous, apex rounded to subacute.

ovoid, 2–3 × 1 mm, apex acute;

floral scales 7–10, 5 per mm of rachilla, bright brown or colorless, medially greenish, ovate to lanceolate, not folded lengthwise, 0.8–1.2(–1.5) × 0.6–0.8 mm, midrib obscure to slightly keeled, apex acute to acuminate.

perianth bristles 6–8, stramineous, stout, flattened, subequal, exceeding achene, to 2.9 mm, coarsely spinulose;

anthers stramineous to reddish, 2.5–5 mm;

styles 2-fid or 3-fid.

perianth bristles absent;

anthers orange-brown, 0.2–0.3 mm.

stramineous to golden-yellow or reddish brown or gray, obovoid to obpyriform, biconvex or nearly plano-convex, often with abaxial longitudinal ridge, 1.4–1.8(–2) × 1.1–1.4 mm, markedly sculptured at 10–15X, each face with 23–37 rows of transversely elongated cells, the longitudinal walls separating the cells often prominent, apex with short neck 0.7–0.8 mm wide.

brownish, broadly ovoid to obpyriform, much less than 2 times longer than wide, with angles plus longitudinal ridges ca. 6, rather obscure, 0.5–0.55 × 0.35 mm, apex blunt, trabeculae 15–20, distinct.

dark brown, lamelliform, slightly higher than wide, 0.7–1.1 × 0.5–0.7 mm.

grayish or brownish, often appressed, mostly pyramidal, 0.1 × 0.1 mm.