Flora of North America species comparison

10–15 mm diam.

bluntly trigonous with nearly flat sides throughout to cylindric proximally, obscurely trigonous distally, 1–4 m × 4–10 mm, smooth.

subcylindric, 0.2–1.5 m × 0.5–1 mm.

3–4, basal, ca. 1/6 culm length;

sheath fronts coarsely pinnate-fibrillose;

blades 0–1, dorsiventrally flat, not more than 1/2 sheath length, distal blade to 20 × 2 mm.

3–20+, smooth;

sheath fronts sometimes delicately pinnate-fibrillose;

blades 3–20, when erect C-shaped in cross section proximally, elliptic most of length, when submerged usually flaccid and filiform to narrowly ribbonlike, probably longer than sheath, 0.2–1 mm wide.

3 or more times branched, branches to 21 cm;

proximal bract usually erect, obtusely trigonous to subcylindric-channeled, 1–8 cm, margins often scabridulous.

a solitary, erect spikelet;

proximal bract erect, like stiff leaf blade, 7–60 mm.

25–150+, solitary and in clusters of 2 or more, 5–11 × 3 mm;

scales orange-brown, brightly lineolate-spotted, broadly oval, 2.5 × 2 mm, margins ciliolate, flanks veinless, apex rounded, notch 0.1–0.2 mm deep, awn not contorted, usually bent outward, 0.3 mm, sparsely scabrous.

5–15 × 3–7 mm;

scales pale brown, or central region green when young, ovate-lanceolate, 4–6 × 1.5 mm, smooth, margins sometimes ciliolate apically at 40X, midrib obscure, apex acute, entire, minutely mucronate.

perianth members 2–4, dark red-brown, thickly strap-shaped or trigonous, equaling achenes, fringed with brownish, soft, blunt hairs;

anthers 1.5 mm;

styles 2-fid.

perianth members 6, brown, bristlelike, from 1/2 of to equaling achene beak, spinulose;

anthers 2–3.5 mm;

styles 3-fid.

dark gray-brown when ripe, unequally biconvex or plano-convex, ovoid to obovoid, 1.8–2.2 × 1.3 mm;

beak 0.2 mm.

brown, strongly trigonous, obovoid to obpyriform, (2.5–)3–3.5 × 1.5–1.7 mm;

beak 0.3–0.8 mm.

= 68.

= 72.