Flora of North America species comparison

to 1.5 cm or shorter, knotty.

densely cespitose, 5-20 cm.

loosely cespitose, 15–45 cm, base sometimes swollen.

sheaths brown to straw-colored;

basal leaves to 10 cm × 4 mm;

cauline leaves usually 2, reduced.

basal leaves 4–15 cm × 2–7 mm, margins pilose to sparsely hairy, apex not callous.

glomerules 1-3, sessile;

proximal inflorescence bract inconspicuous, brown, much shorter to ± equaling inflorescence, apex often clear, dentate;

bracts deep brown, margins dentate;

bracteoles deep brown, margins dentate.

glomerules 4–15, central glomerules sessile or nearly sessile, broadly conic or globose (often loosely flowered);

peduncles straight, divergent by as much as 90°, to 9 cm;

proximal inflorescence bract leaflike, not longer than inflorescence;

bracts and bracteoles clear, variously cut.

tepals deep brown with narrow clear margins and apex, 1.7-2.1 mm;

anthers ± equaling filament length.

tepals greenish to pale or dark brown, usually with clear margins and apex, 2.8–4 mm;

anthers ca. 2–5 times filament length;

stigmas 2–3 times length of styles.

dark reddish to blackish, shining, spheric, 1.8-2.1 mm, usually exceeding tepals.

pale to dark brown, obovoid to subglobose, usually shorter than tepals.

translucent, clear brown, broadly elliptic, with few entangled hairs, 1-1.2 mm.

dark brown, globose, 1.2–1.6 mm;

caruncle 0.5–0.6 mm.

= 24.

= 12.