Flora of North America species comparison

erect to curved, leafy, obscurely trigonous to nearly terete, few ribbed, slender.

arching-ascending, leafy, obtusely trigonous, slender;

principal leaves overtopped by inflorescence;

blades flat, to 3 mm, apex tapering, trigonous.

clusters 1 or 2–3, then widely spaced, narrowly turbinate to hemispheric, 1.5–2.5 cm wide; subtending leafy bracts often exceeded by distal cluster.

terminal and axillary, clusters 1–5 or more, compact, turbinate or hemispheric, 1–1.5 cm wide;

peduncles progressively shorter distally on culm;

bracteal leaves mostly exceeding subtended compounds.

pale brown to nearly white, ellipsoid, 3.5–5.5 mm, apex acute;

fertile scales elliptic, 3–3.5(–4) mm, apex acute or acuminate, midrib excurrent as mucro.

rich deep brown, rarely pale brown, lanceellipsoid, 3.5–4(–5) mm;

fertile scale elliptic, 2.7–3 mm, apex acute or rounded, midrib shortexcurrent or not.

perianth bristles 10–12, slightly overtopping tubercle, retrorsely barbellate or rarely smooth, base often setose.

perianth absent.

1(–2) per spikelet, (2.3–)2.5–3 mm;

body pale brown with paler center, stipitateobovoid, lenticular, 1.5–1.8(–2) × 0.9–1.2 mm;

surfaces transversely striate, relatively smooth, rim narrow, flowing to tubercle base;

tubercle narrowly triangularsubulate, 0.5–1.2 mm.

(1–)2–3(–5) per spikelet, (2–)2.5–3 mm;

body redbrown with pale central disc, stipitate, lenticular, obovoid, 1.2–1.5 × 0.7–1(–1.2) mm, margins pale, wirelike, surfaces slick;

tubercle triangular-subulate, (0.8–)1–1.2(–1.6) mm.

leaves mostly overtopped by culm;

blades narrowly linear to filiform, proximally flat, 0.5–1.5 mm, apex tapering, trigonous.