Flora of North America species comparison

erect or ascending, leafy, trigonous.

stiffly erect or ascending, leafy-based, triangular, multiribbed.

exceeded by culm;

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

ascending or erect, crowded toward culm base, shorter, more widely spaced distally, longest overtopping or equaling subtended inflorescences;

principal blades flat, trigonous distally, 4–6 mm wide, apex attenuate, trigonous.

terminal and axillary;

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

terminal and axillary, compounds of fascicles, nearly umbellate;

clusters hemispheric to nearly capitate, 1.5–2 cm wide; 1 cluster nearly sessile, others on slender rays to 7 cm, sometimes penultimate node with single cluster on peduncle 7–12 cm.

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

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

light redbrown, lanceoloid, 6–7 mm, apex acute;

fertile scales lance-ovate, 5 mm, apex acute to blunt, midrib shortexcurrent or not.

perianth bristles mostly 6, exceeding tubercle tip.

perianth bristles 6, overtopping tubercle base, 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 per spikelet, (5.5–)6–7 mm;

body obovoid, 3–4 × 2–2.5 mm, margins thick, crimped, surfaces level or concave, minutely pebbled;

tubercle narrowly conic, 2grooved, 3–4 mm, base blunt, stout, capping fruit apex, tip barely exserted.