Flora of North America species comparison

to 2 times wider than thick, 35–60(–70) cm × 0.5–1.3 mm, hard, usually with to 10 blunt ribs, at 20X often finely ridged and minutely granular.

greatly compressed, 4–10 times wider than thick, often with 1 or 2 sharp ridges on 1 side, (8–)20–35 cm × 0.7–2.3 mm, hard, finely striate, spongy.

distal leaf sheaths brown to reddish.

distal leaf sheaths persistent, not splitting, proximally red or stramineous, distally green to stramineous, inflated, papery, apex dark brown, broadly obtuse to subtruncate, callose, tooth absent.

3–12 × 3–4 mm;

proximal scale amplexicaulous, 3.5–4 mm, midrib region very broad and fleshy, apex entire;

subproximal scale with a flower;

floral scales 30–40, 8–10 per mm of rachilla, orange-brown to stramineous, midrib region stramineous, broadly ovate, papery or sometimes membranous, 3–4 × 2 mm, apex entire, rounded.

ovoid, 4–9 × 2.5–4 mm, apex acute;

proximal scale clasping 2/3–3/4 of culm, apex 2-fid;

subproximal scale empty or with a flower;

floral scales spreading in fruit, 30–60, 6–9 per mm of rachilla, medium or pale brown, midrib region often paler, ovate-lanceolate, 2.5–3.5 × 1.5 mm, apex 2-fid, carinate in distal part of spikelet.

perianth bristles present, sometimes rudimentary, brown, length variable, obscurely retrorsely spinulose;

anthers brown, 1.7–2.2 mm.

perianth bristles 0(–5), stramineous to pale brown, 1/2 of to equaling achene length;

stamens 3;

anthers orange-brown, 0.7–1.5 mm;

styles 3-fid.

subdeltoid in outline, sometimes broadly obpyriform, equilaterally trigonous, angles prominent, 0.9–1.2 × 0.7–1.1 mm, apex truncate.

falling with scales, yellow-brown to medium brown, obovoid to obpyriform, nearly equilaterally trigonous, cross section circular to slightly compressed, angles obscure or evident, 0.9–1.1 × 0.6–0.75, neck usually very short, finely rugulose at 10–30X, 20 or more low, blunt horizontal ridges in vertical series.

sessile, depressed-pyramidal, often apiculate, as wide as achene, 0.3–0.5 × 0.7–1.1 mm.

brown, depressed-pyramidal, often rudimentary, 0.1–0.25 × 0.2–0.3 mm.