Flora of North America species comparison

erect or ascending, slender, leafy proximal to middle, somewhat stiff.

arching or erect, leafy, nearly terete, multiribbed, slender.

overtopped by culm;

blades ascending, ± filiform, proximally flat or slightly concave, to 1 mm wide, apex narrowing, trigonous, abruptly blunt.

spikelet clusters 1–2, if 2 then close together, dense, broadly turbinate to hemispheric or even globose;

primary leafy bract setaceous, exceeding clusters.

spikelet clusters 2–6, mostly widely spaced;

clusters dense, hemispheric to mostly spheroid, 0.5–1 cm thick.

redbrown, ovoid, 2–2.5(–4) mm, apex acute;

fertile scales broadly ovate, 1.5–1.9(–2) mm, apex acute to acuminate, midrib excurrent as awn to 0.5 mm.

dark redbrown to dark brown, lanceovoid, (2–)2.5–3.5(–4) mm, apex acute;

fertile scales elliptic, 2–3 mm, apex acute, midrib shortexcurrent or not.

bristles 6, some reaching to apex of fruit body.

perianth bristles 6, reaching tubercle tip, retrorsely barbellate.

2–3 per spikelet, 1–1.2(–1.4) mm;

body dull dark brown with paler brown center, lenticular, broadly obovoid to broadly ellipsoid, 1 × 0.8 mm, margins narrow, flowing to tubercle;

tubercle nearly equilaterally triangular, 0.2–0.3 mm.

1 per spikelet, 2.5–3 mm;

body pale brown with light center, lenticular, obovoid distal to stipe, 1.1–1.5 × 0.9–1.1 mm, margins pale, wirelike, surfaces slick;

tubercle triangularsubulate, 0.9–1.2(–1.5) mm, at least 0.5 mm wide at base.

leaves overtopped by culm;

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