Flora of North America species comparison

present, caudexlike, mostly concealed by crowded culms, vertical or ascending, 2 mm thick;

internodes very short, scales disintegrating to fibers, 4 mm, papery.

erect to ascending or arching, acutely quadrangular, deeply sulcate, 7–50 cm × 0.3–0.5 mm, smooth, firm.

3–42 cm × 0.3–0.6 mm.

distal leaf sheaths persistent, proximally brown or reddish, distally stramineous to green, thickly membranous, apex acute or subacute.

distal leaf sheaths often disintegrating, thinly membranous-translucent, inflated distally, often wrinkled, apex blunt.

basal spikelets absent; often proliferous, ovoid, terete, 3–10 × 2–3 mm, apex acute;

proximal scale empty, amplexicaulous, similar to floral scales;

subproximal scale with a flower;

floral scales spiraled, 8–15, 4 per mm of rachilla, orange-brown, midrib region broadly stramineous or like flanks, ovate, 2–3 × 1.2–2 mm, membranous, midrib evident to prominent, apex acute (to rounded).

ellipsoid, 1.5–9 × 1–3.5 mm, apex acute to acuminate;

proximal scale without flower, not amplexicaulous;

floral scales to 65, 5–7 per mm of rachilla, loosely appressed to appressed, elliptic, 1–3 × 0.4–1.6 mm, membranous, apex acute.

perianth bristles 6 or fewer, stramineous, unequal, some or most equaling achene, spinules obscure, sparse, retrorse, sharply acute.

perianth bristles (0–)5–8, typically 7, white to stramineous, spinules dense to few;

styles 2-fid, rarely 3-fid.

3;

anthers 1.2–1.5 mm.

3-fid.

stramineous, broadly obpyriform, equilaterally trigonous, angles evident, blunt, 0.9–1.1 × 0.7–0.9 mm, apex nearly truncate, smooth or obscurely papillose or rugulose at 20X.

stramineous to green or dark brown, biconvex, rarely trigonous, obovoid to obpryiform, 0.4–1.1 × 0.3–0.8 mm, very finely reticulate at 40X.

stramineous, pyramidal, trigonous, usually acute, proximally trilobed, the lobes decurrent on achene, 0.5–0.9 × 0.7–0.9 mm.

whitish to stramineous or green, 0.2–0.7 × 0.2–0.4 mm, apex acute to acuminate.