Flora of North America species comparison

spreading to erect, leafy, obtusely triangular.

excurvednodding, leafy, triangular, slender;

principal leaves overtopped by culm;

blades flat, 2.5–5 mm wide, apex attenuate, trigonous.

often exceeding inflorescences;

blades narrowly linear, proximally flat, 1–3 mm wide, apex trigonous, tapering.

terminal and axillary, clusters of 1–5 corymbs; leafy bracts much exceeding corymbs.

terminal and axillary, spikelet clusters mostly 2–6, compact, turbinate to hemispheric, 1.5–2 cm wide;

peduncles progressively shorter distally on culm;

bracteal leaves mostly exceeding subtended groups.

few to several, on ascending, stiff, short-to-elongate branches, red-brown to brown, lanceoloid, (5–)6–10 mm, apex acuminate;

fertile scales many, ovate, shallowly convex, 5 mm, apex acuminate;

midrib short-excurrent or not.

crowded, deep redbrown, lanceellipsoid, 4.5–6.5 mm;

fertile scales ovatelanceolate, 3.5–4(–4.5) mm, apex acute, midrib mostly shortexcurrent.

perianth absent.

perianth bristles 6, overtopping tubercle, antrorsely barbellate.

1.5 mm;

body dark brown to black, tumidly lenticular, nearly orbicular, 0.8–0.9 × 0.6–0.7 mm, margins grooved, discontinuous with tubercle;

surfaces transversely wavyrugose, ridges of contiguous rows of vertical, linear, raised cells;

tubercle broad, low triangular, 0.2–0.3 mm, crustaceous, base capping fruit summit, raised at ends, apex shortacuminate.

(1–)2(–3) per spikelet, 3–4 mm;

body dark redbrown with pale center, stipitate, lenticular, obovoid, or orbicular, 1.5–2 × 1.2–1.4 mm, base narrowed, margins pale, wirelike;

surfaces slick;

tubercle triangular-subulate, 1.3–1.5(–1.8) mm.