Flora of North America species comparison

leafiest toward base, ± trigonous, slender.

erect to excurved, leafybased, filiform.

basal leaves spreadingascending, distal more erect, mostly exceeded by culms (except in highaltitude forms);

blades proximally flat or strongly folded, 1.5–4 mm wide, apex trigonous, subulate.

shorter than culm;

blades ascending to excurved, filiform, proximally to 1 mm wide, margins involute, apex trigonous, subulate, tapering.

spikelet clusters (2–)3–5, compact, proximalmost widely spaced, turbinate to ovoid;

peduncles ascending;

branches ascending to spreading;

leaf bracts exceeding proximalmost clusters, exceeded by distal cluster.

spikelet clusters 1–3, laterals 0–2, turbinate, rarely hemispheric; leafy bracts setaceous, overtopping inflorescence.

deep redbrown to nearly black, ovoid, 3–4 mm, apex acute;

fertile scales ovate, 2.5–3 mm, apex acute, midrib included or shortexcurrent.

redbrown, narrowly lanceoloid, 5–7 mm, apex acute;

fertile scales lanceolate, 3.5–5 mm, apex acute, mucronate.

perianth bristles 6, some short, some extending to or nearly to tubercle base, antrorsely barbellate.

perianth absent.

2–3 per spikelet, 2–2.1 mm;

body pale yellowbrown, lenticular, broadly ellipsoidobovoid, 1.3–1.6 × 1–1.2 mm;

surfaces transversely irregularly rugulose, intervals with rows of vertical, narrowly rectangular alveolae;

tubercle evenly or concavely triangular, 0.5–0.6(–0.7) mm.

2(–5) per spikelet, (1.7–)2–2.2 mm;

body on short, setulose receptacular stipe, brown with pale center, obovoidlenticular, 0.8–1.1 mm, surfaces very finely longitudinally lined, sometimes faintly reticulatecancellate;

tubercle triangular subulate, 0.7–0.9 mm, base lunate, edges setulose.