Flora of North America species comparison

erect, leafy, nearly terete or angled, manyribbed.

excurvednodding, leafy, triangular, slender;

principal leaves overtopped by culm;

blades flat, 2.5–5 mm wide, apex attenuate, trigonous.

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

terminal and axillary, spikelet clusters mostly 2–6, compact, turbinate to hemispheric, 1.5–2 cm wide;

peduncles progressively shorter distally on culm;

bracteal leaves mostly exceeding subtended groups.

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.

crowded, deep redbrown, lanceellipsoid, 4.5–6.5 mm;

fertile scales ovatelanceolate, 3.5–4(–4.5) mm, apex acute, midrib mostly shortexcurrent.

perianth absent.

perianth bristles 6, overtopping tubercle, antrorsely barbellate.

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.

(1–)2(–3) per spikelet, 3–4 mm;

body dark redbrown with pale center, stipitate, lenticular, obovoid, or orbicular, 1.5–2 × 1.2–1.4 mm, base narrowed, margins pale, wirelike;

surfaces slick;

tubercle triangular-subulate, 1.3–1.5(–1.8) mm.

midculm leaves often exceeding inflorescences;

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