Rhynchospora fernaldii |
Rhynchospora rariflora |
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Fernald's beaksedge |
fewflower beaksedge |
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Habit | Plants perennial, cespitose, 15–50 cm; rhizomes absent. | Plants perennial, densely cespitose, 15–60 cm; rhizomes compact, branching, slender. |
Culms | erect or ascending, slender, leafy proximal to middle, somewhat stiff. |
lax,filiform, leafy, terete, grooved. |
Leaves | overtopped by culm; blades ascending, ± filiform, proximally flat or slightly concave, to 1 mm wide, apex narrowing, trigonous, abruptly blunt. |
ascending to erect, exceeded by culm, blades lax, filiform, margins proximally deeply involute, apex trigonous, tapering. |
Inflorescences | spikelet clusters 1–2, if 2 then close together, dense, broadly turbinate to hemispheric or even globose; primary leafy bract setaceous, exceeding clusters. |
mostly cymose clusters, simple or compound, 1–3(–4), widely spaced, loose, narrowly to broadly turbinate;, branchies capillary, ascending to spreading, leafy bracts setaceous, exceeded by or exceeding cymes. |
Spikelets | 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. |
light redbrown or brown, lanceovoid to fusiform, 3–4(–4.5) mm, apex acuminate, fertile scales ovate, mostly 2–3 mm, apex rounded to acute, midrib included or shortexcurrent. |
Flowers | bristles 6, some reaching to apex of fruit body. |
perianth bristles mostly 6, unequal, rarely extending past fruit midbody, antrorsely barbellate. |
Fruits | 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. |
1–4 per spikelet, 1.8–2 mm, body yellowbrown to brown, lustrous, tumidly obovoidlenticular, 1–1.5 × 1–1.5 mm, surfaces transversely wavyrugose, intervals vertically striate with narrow alveolae, tubercle flat, triangular, 0.3–0.6 mm. |
Rhynchospora fernaldii |
Rhynchospora rariflora |
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Phenology | Fruiting summer–fall. | Fruiting spring–summer or all year (south). |
Habitat | Sands and peats of low clearings in flatwoods, savannas, and bog edges | Sands or peats of low savannas, seeps, bogs, flatwoods, pond shores, stream banks |
Elevation | 0–100 m (0–300 ft) | 0–400 m (0–1300 ft) |
Distribution |
AL; FL; GA; MS |
AL; AR; FL; GA; LA; MD; MS; NC; NJ; OK; SC; TN; TX; VA; Mexico; Central America; West Indies
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Discussion | Rhynchospora rariflora forms solid tussocks by means of short, forking, compact masses of rhizomes. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Source | FNA vol. 23, p. 235. | FNA vol. 23, p. 221. |
Parent taxa | Cyperaceae > Rhynchospora | Cyperaceae > Rhynchospora |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | R. fascicularis var. fernaldii | Schoenus rariflorus, Phaeocephalum rariflorum |
Name authority | Gale: Rhodora 46: 182, plate 825, figs. 3A, B. (1944) | (Michaux) Elliott: Sketch Bot. S. Carolina 1: 58. (1816) |
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