Flora of North America species comparison

erect to arching, leafy, linear to filiform, nearly triangular.

erect with arching tops, leafy, obscurely trigonous, slender.

ascending, overtopped by culm;

blades flat, linear to filiform, to 1.8 mm wide, apex distally involute, trigonous, setaceous.

overtopped by inflorescence;

blades linear, proximally flat, 3–5 mm wide, apex trigonous, subulate, tapering.

terminal and axillary, spikelet clusters 2–4, widely spaced, the lowest near plant base;

clusters compact, broadly turbinate to hemispheric, to 1.5 cm wide; leafy bracts curved, setaceous, slightly to greatly overtopping subtended compounds.

spikelet clusters mostly 4–6, various in shape and crowding, narrowly to broadly turbinate;

peduncles erect, branches slender, ascending; leafy bracts exceeding all but most distal clusters.

dark brown, lance-ellipsoid, 2–3 mm;

fertile scales 2 mm, apex acute, midrib short-excurrent or not.

redbrown, broadly ellipsoid, (1.5–)2–3(–3.5) mm, apex acute;

fertile scales broadly ovate, 2–3 mm, midrib excurrent as apiculus or awn.

perianth bristles 6, ± as long as fruit body, retrorsely barbellate.

perianth bristles 6, mostly spreading, usually exceeding tubercle, antrorsely barbellate.

mostly 2 per spikelet, 1.5–1.9 mm;

body brown with yellowish center, ellipsoid, lenticular distal to short stipe, 1–1.3 × 0.6–0.8 mm;

tubercle triangular, 0.3–0.6 mm, distinctly shorter than fruit body.

2–3(–4) per spikelet, 1.5(–1.7) mm;

body pale brown to brown, strongly flattened, obovoidorbicular, 1–1.2 × 0.8–1.1;

surfaces transversely wavyrugose, intervals vertically striate with very narrowly rectangular alveolae;

tubercle flat, triangular or concavely triangular, 0.3–0.5(–0.7) mm.