Flora of North America species comparison

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

erect, leafy, nearly terete or angled, manyribbed.

ascending, overtopped by culm;

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

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.

terminal and axillary, clusters of corymbs 1–5, usually diffuse; leafy bracts exceeding proximal corymbs.

dark brown, lance-ellipsoid, 2–3 mm;

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

dark brown, lanceoloid to ovoid, mostly 4–6(–8) mm, apex acute;

fertile scales many, ovate, rounded-convex, 2–3.5 mm, apex acute, midrib mostly included, rarely forming apiculus.

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

perianth absent.

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.

1–1.3(–1.5) mm, body dark brown, tumidly lenticular, nearly orbicular, 0.7–1 × 0.7–1 mm, margins strong, interrupted at tubercle base;

surfaces irregularly transversely rugulose with wavy rows of vertical, linear, raised cells;

tubercle depressed-triangular, 0.1–0.3 mm, capping fruit summit, base broadly 2lobed.

midculm leaves often exceeding inflorescences;

blades linear, proximally flattened, 1–5 mm wide, apex trigonous, tapering.