Flora of North America species comparison

erect or ascending, leafy, trigonous.

stiffly erect to ascending, linear, leafy toward base, sharply trigonous, angles scabrid.

exceeded by culm;

blades linear, proximally 4–7 mm wide, apex trigonous, tapering.

shorter than culm;

basal leaves forming strong rosette, shortlinear, flat, 3–5 mm wide, distal more widely spaced, narrower, apex shortacuminate, trigonous.

terminal and axillary;

clusters 3–6, mostly dense, narrowly to broadly turbinate, branches ascending; leafy bracts exceeeding proximalmost inflorescences.

spikelet clusters 1(–2), if 2 then closely set;

terminal cluster mostly dense, hemispheric;

proximalmost leafy bract subulate, much exceeding clusters.

rich brown, ovoid, (3–)4–5 mm, apex acuminate;

fertile scales ovate, 2.5–3.5 mm, apex acuminate, midrib included or shortexcurrent.

dark redbrown, ovoid, (4–)5–6 mm, apex acute;

fertile scales ovate, mostly 4–4.5 mm, apex excurvedcuspidate.

perianth bristles mostly 6, exceeding tubercle tip.

bristles 12, reaching to or slightly beyond tubercle tip, antrorsely barbellate.

mostly 3–4 per spikelet, 2–2.2 mm;

body brown on short pedicellar (to 0.3 mm) stalk, broadly obovoid, lenticular, 1.3–1.5 × 1–1.5 mm, surfaces transversely rugulose, vertically finely striate and rectangularalveolate;

tubercle compressed, triangular acuminate, 0.5–0.8 mm, edges setulose.

1–2 per spikelet, 3–3.5(–3.7) mm;

body dark brown with paler center, dull, broadly ellipsoid-lenticular, 2–2.5 × 1.8–2 mm, smooth, margins flowing to tubercle;

tubercle flat, concavely triangular, 0.7–1(–1.2) mm.