Flora of North America species comparison

polystichous, mostly spreading to ascending;

sheath margins entire;

ligule present, complete;

blades narrowly linear, to 1 mm wide, flat to shallowly involute, margins distantly scabrid, surface glabrous.

nearly polystichous, spreading to ascending, 1/2 as long as culms;

sheaths contracted, abruptly dilated, margins fimbriate-ciliate distally;

ligule present, complete;

blades narrowly linear, 1.5–2.5 mm wide, flat to shallowly involute, margin intermittently scabrid-ciliate, abaxial surface usually glabrous.

spikelets 1, terminal or 2–3 in simple anthela longer than broad, laterals subsessile;

scapes narrowly linear, coarsely ribbed, distally compressed;

involucral bracts usually 1 per spikelet, exceeding or exceeded by it.

anthelae mostly simple, of 2–7(–9) spikelets, ascending-branched, slightly mostly longer than broad, scapes slender, 1 mm wide, to very compressed distally;, proximalmost involucral bract shorter than anthela.

yellowish, mostly turgidly ovoid, 5–8 mm;

fertile scales broadly ovate, 2–3 mm, apex obtuse, entire, midrib excurrent or not.

red-brown, narrowly ovoid to lanceoloid or cylindric, 5–15 mm, fertile scales broadly ovate, 4.5–5 mm, glabrous to puberulent, midrib excurrent as cusp or mucro.

stamens 3, styles 2-fid, flattened, fimbriate.

stamens 3, styles 2-fid, flat, fimbriate.

near white to pale brown, lenticular-obovoid to obpyriform, 2 mm, appearing smooth under 10–20X magnification, under higher power finely longitudinally ribbed, with fine, isodiametric pits in vertical lines.

dark brown to greenish brown, obovoid-lenticular, 1.2–1.5 mm, faces each 11–13-ribbed, cancellate, ribs connected by vertical rows of transversely rectangular pits.

= 10.