Chapter C: EXTENSA, Gooden. Slender but strict, 1--2 deg. high; leaves involute;

spikes about 3, the lowest remote and short-peduncled, the remainder approximate and sessile, short (about 1/2' long) and compact; perigynium ovate, very strongly nerved, ascending, the short stout beak sharply toothed, longer than the blunt brown-edged scale.--Long Island and Coney Island, N. Y.; Norfolk, Va., _McMinn._ (Nat. from Eu.)

62. C. flava, L. Very slender but strict and stiff, 1--2 deg. high, yellowish throughout; leaves flat but narrow, mostly shorter than the culm; staminate spike sessile or nearly so, usually oblique; pistillate spikes 2--4, all contiguous or rarely the lowest one remote, all but the lowest sessile, short-oblong or globular, densely flowered, the lowest subtended by a long divaricate bract; perigynium ovate, produced into a deflexed beak as long as the body, strongly nerved, thrice longer than the blunt scale.--Swales and wet meadows, N. Eng. to L. Superior; rare westward. (Eu.)--Var. GRAMINIS, Bailey. Smaller and green, 6--12' high; leaves mostly longer than the culm; bracts erect; perigynium straight or nearly so, the beak often rough. Grassy places, probably common and generally distributed.

Var. viridula, Bailey. Small and slender, very strict, green or greenish-white; leaves narrow, equalling or exceeding the culm; bracts long and strictly erect, spikes very small or sometimes becoming cylindric, more closely aggregated; perigynium conspicuously smaller, the beak very short and straight. (C. OEderi, last ed.)--Cold bogs, N. Eng. to Penn., and northwestward; local.

[*] 5.--[+] 3. _Pallescentes_.

[++] _Perigynium wholly beakless._

63. C. pallescens, L. Slender, erect, 4'--2 deg. high, tufted; leaves narrow, flat, the lower slightly pubescent, particularly on the sheaths; spikes 2--4, 1/2' long or less, densely flowered, all but the upper one very shortly peduncled, erect or spreading; perigynium globular-oblong, thin and very nearly nerveless, about the length of the cuspidate scale.--Glades and meadows, N. Eng. to Penn., Wisc. and L. Superior; rare westward. (Eu.)

[++][++] _Perigynium very stout-beaked._

64. C. Torreyi, Tuckerm. Stiff, 1--11/2 deg. high; culm and leaves thinly pubescent; spikes all sessile, very short; perigynium obovate, very strongly many-nerved, retuse, the beak short and straight, equalling or exceeding the mostly cuspidate scale.--Supposed to have been collected, a half-century ago, in N. Y. by Torrey, and in Penn. by Schweinitz. It occurs in the Rocky Mountain region, and high northward.

[*] 6. DACTYLOSTACHYAE.--[+] 1. _Oligocarpae_.

[++] _Sheaths smooth._

65. C. conoidea, Schkuhr. Slender but strict, 1--11/2 deg. high; staminate spike long-peduncled or rarely nearly sessile; spikes 2--3, scattered, short-stalked or the upper one sessile (the lowest frequently very long-stalked), oblong (rarely 1' long) and rather loosely flowered, erect; perigynium oblong-conical, impressed-nerved, gradually narrowed to a point, the orifice entire; scale loosely spreading and rough-awned, equalling or exceeding the perigynium.--Moist grassy places, N. Eng. to Ill., and southward; rare westward.

66. C. oligocarpa, Schkuhr. Diffuse, 10--18' high; bracts flat and spreading; staminate spike sessile or stalked; spikes 2--4, scattered, stalked or the uppermost sessile, loosely 2--8-flowered, erect; perigynium small, hard, finely impressed-nerved, abruptly contracted into a conspicuous mostly oblique beak, the orifice entire; scale very loosely spreading and rough-awned, longer than the perigynium.--Dry woods and copses, W. New Eng. to Mo., and southward; rare westward. Often confounded with small forms of n. 58.

[++][++] _Sheaths pubescent._

67. C. Hitchcockiana, Dewey. Erect, 11/2--2 deg. high; spikes 2--4, all more or less peduncled, very loosely few-flowered, erect; perigynium triangular-ovate, many-striate, the strong beak prominently oblique, shorter than the rough-awned scale.--Rich woods, W. New Eng. to Ill., and southward to Penn. and Ky.; frequent.

[*] 6.--[+] 2. _Laxiflorae_.

[++] _Sheaths green._

[=] _Perigynium mostly obscurely triangular, the beak very prominent._

68. C. laxiflora, Lam. Slender but mostly erect, 1--2 deg. high; leaves rarely over 2'' wide, rather soft; staminate spike peduncled or at least conspicuous; pistillate spikes 2--4, scattered, peduncled or the upper one sessile, loosely flowered, cylindric or sometimes reduced to short-oblong, erect or the lower loosely spreading; perigynium obovate, conspicuously nerved, the short entire beak much bent or recurved; scale thin and white, blunt or cuspidate, mostly shorter than the perigynium.--Grassy places, throughout; common. Exceedingly variable.--Var. VARIANS, Bailey. Mostly stouter than the type, the leaves broader; pistillate spikes 1/2--1' long, the two upper more or less contiguous to the staminate spike and sessile or nearly so; bracts leafy and prolonged.--Copses and grassy places, throughout; common. Counterfeits var. patulifolia.--Var. STRIATULA, Carey. Diffuse; pistillate spikes rarely over 1/2' long, the upper sessile and aggregated about the inconspicuous staminate spike, the lowest usually long-exserted. Grassy places, throughout; very common.--Var. LATIFOLIA, Boott. Rather low; leaves 1/2' broad or more; staminate spike sessile or very nearly so; pistillate spikes cylindric and loose, the upper one or two contiguous; bracts very broad. Deep rich woods, E. Mass. (_Deane_) to Penn. and Mich.; common westward.--Var. PATULIFOLIA, Carey. Glaucous; leaves 3'' broad or more; staminate spike prominent, mostly stalked; pistillate spikes long and alternately flowered, scattered and peduncled; perigynium (as in the following varieties) elliptic, attenuate at both ends, mostly less prominently nerved, and the beak not strongly recurved. Open places, N. Eng. to Mich., and southward; frequent.--Var. DIVARICATA, Bailey. Tall and stout; leaves narrower; staminate spike large and stalked; pistillate spikes scattered, all but the upper one prominently peduncled, long; perigynium very large, divaricate, triangular, contracted into a stipe-like base at least half as long as the body. Near Washington, _Vasey_.--Var. STYLOFLEXA, Boott. Very weak and slender; leaves 2'' wide or less; staminate spike usually peduncled; pistillate 2--3, scattered, few-flowered, lowest drooping; perigynium very long-pointed. S. E. Penn., and southward; frequent.

[=][=] _Perigynium sharply triangular, short, and mostly not prominently beaked._

[a.] _Spikes drooping or flexuose._

69. C. digitalis, Willd. Very slender, bright green, tufted, 6--18' high; leaves very narrow (1--2'' wide); staminate spike short stalked; pistillate spikes 2--4, all on filiform stalks and all but the upper widely spreading or drooping, linear, alternately flowered; perigynium very small, impressed-nerved, longer than the acute whitish scale.--Dryish woods and glades, N. Eng. to Mich., and southward; frequent.--Var. COPULATA, Bailey. Leaves much broader, and the culms weak and reclined; spikes heavier and mostly shorter; perigynium larger, very sharp. Rich woods, central Mich., and probably elsewhere westward.

70. C. laxiculmis, Schwein. Differs from the variety of n. 69 chiefly in its more cespitose habit, its densely glaucous-blue covering, very slender culm, and very long and filiform peduncles. (C. retrocurva, _Dewey_.)--Glades, N. Eng. to Mich. and Va.; rare westward.

[b.] _Spikes erect._

71. C. ptychocarpa, Steudel. Low, glaucous, 3--10' high; leaves flat and rather broad (2'' or more), much exceeding the culm; bracts leafy and much prolonged; staminate spike very small and sessile, mostly overtopped by the upper pistillate spike; pistillate spikes 2--3, sessile or short-stalked or rarely the lowest long-peduncled, erect; perigynium tawny, much as in n. 69, twice longer than the very thin obtuse scale.--Low grounds or swamps, E. Mass., N. J., Del., and southward; local.

72. C. platyphylla, Carey. Low, spreading, glaucous, 6--12' high; leaves 1/2' broad or more, mostly shorter than the culms; bracts with thin and sharp-pointed leaf-like tips 1--2' long; staminate spike stalked; pistillate spikes 2--3, scattered, all more or less peduncled, alternately 2--10-flowered; perigynium short, strongly many-striate, about the length of the acute or cuspidate scale.--Rich shady woods and banks, N. Eng. to Mich., and southward to Va.; mostly local.

73. C. Careyana, Torr. Tall and slender, mostly erect, 1--2 deg. high; leaves bright green, firm, 3--4'' wide or more, shorter than the long culm; bracts leafy, longer than in the last; staminate spike heavy and stalked; pistillate spikes 2--3 (mostly 2), the upper usually near the terminal spike, and nearly sessile, the other remote and long-peduncled, loosely 2--8-flowered; perigynium very large and very sharply angled, the beak oblique, finely many-nerved, twice longer than the sharp scale.--Rich woods, N. Eng. to Mich., and southward to Washington; rare.

[++][++] _Sheaths usually purple._

74. C. plantaginea, Lam. Slender but erect, 1--2 deg. high; leaves 1/2--1' broad, very firm, appearing after the flowers and persisting over winter, shorter than the culm; staminate spike purple and clavate, stalked; pistillate spikes 3--4, scattered, loosely few-flowered, erect, the peduncles included in the leafless sheaths; perigynium smaller than in n. 73, prominently beaked, about as long as the sharp scale.--Rich woods, N. Eng. to Wisc., and southward; local.

[*] 6.--[+] 3. _Paniceae_.

[++] _Beak cylindrical and prominent; plant not glaucous._

75. C. Saltuensis, Bailey. Very slender and more or less diffuse, strongly stoloniferous, 1--11/2 deg. high; leaves narrow and soft, shorter than the culm; spikes 2--3, scattered, all peduncled and more or less spreading, loosely 3--10-flowered; perigynium small, nearly nerveless, thin, the beak straight and sharply toothed; scale loose, acute, shorter than the perigynium. (C. vaginata, last ed.)--Deep swamps, Vt. to Minn.; local.

76. C. polymorpha, Muhl. Stout, 1--2 deg. high; leaves rather broad, short; spikes 1--2, short-stalked, erect, compact or rarely loose, usually staminate at the apex, 11/2' long or less; perigynium long-ovate, obscurely nerved; the very long and nearly straight beak oblique or lipped at the orifice; scale reddish-brown, obtuse, shorter than the perigynium.--Moist meadows, Mass. to N. C.; local.

[++][++] _Beak short or none; plant often glaucous._

[=] _Plants of ordinary habit._

77. C. tetanica, Schkuhr. Rather slender, rarely glaucous, somewhat stoloniferous; culm scabrous, at least above; spikes all peduncled, the upper one very shortly so, pale, all more or less attenuate below, the lower borne in the axils of bracts 3' long or more; perigynium not turgid, greenish, prominently many-nerved, the beak strongly bent; scale obtuse or abruptly mucronate, all except the lowest mostly shorter than the perigynium.--Meadows and borders of ponds from W. Mass. westward; common westward.--Var. WOODII, Bailey. Very slender and strongly stoloniferous; leaves narrow, very long and lax; spikes mostly alternately flowered throughout; scales often sharper. (C. Woodii, _Dewey_.) Rich woods, N. Y. to Mich., and south to Washington; frequent.--Var. MEADII, Bailey. Stiffer; leaves mostly broader and stricter; spikes thick and densely flowered, not attenuate at base, the upper one often sessile; perigynium larger. (C. Meadii, _Dewey_.) R. I. to Neb., and southward; rare eastward.--Var. CANBYI, Porter. Stout and stiff; leaves still broader (about 2'' wide) and flat; spikes thick, often 1/4' wide; perigynium long, straight or very nearly so; scale large, nearly equalling or exceeding the perigynium. E. Penn. (_Canby_); Ill. and Wisc.; little known.

[C.] PANICEA, L. Strict, often stiff, glaucous-blue 1--2 deg. high; culm smooth; bracts 1--2' long; spikes 1--3, scattered, colored, peduncled, erect, rather compact or loose below, seldom 1' long; perigynium ovoid, yellow or purple, somewhat turgid, scarcely nerved, the point usually curved, mostly longer than the purple-margined scale.--Fields, E. Mass. and R. I. (Nat. from Eu.)

[=][=] _Very strict, densely glaucous._

78. C. livida, Willd. Culms 18' high or less; leaves narrow, often becoming involute; spikes 1 or 2 and aggregated or approximate, or rarely a third nearly radical, sessile or nearly so, erect, narrow; perigynium ovoid-oblong, nerved, granular, beakless, the point straight or nearly so, orifice entire; scale obtuse, mostly a little shorter than the perigynium.--Pine-barrens of N. J., and sphagnum swamps northward to N. Eng. and L. Superior; local. (Eu.)

[*] 6.--[+] 4. _Bicolores_.

79. C. aurea, Nutt. Low and slender, 1 deg. high or less; bracts exceeding the culm; spikes 2--4, all but the lowest usually approximate, peduncled or the upper one or two sessile, erect, loosely few-flowered or sometimes becoming 3/4' long, at maturity yellow or brown, the terminal one frequently pistillate above; perigynium fleshy at maturity, nerved, longer than the blunt scale.--Wet meadows and springy banks, throughout; rather common.

[*] 6.--[+] 5. _Digitatae_.

[++] _Spikes two or more._

80. C. eburnea, Boott. Exceedingly slender and capillary, erect, 4--12' high, stoloniferous; leaves shorter than the culm; staminate spike very small and very short-peduncled, overtopped by the two upper pistillate spikes; pistillate spikes 2--4, approximate or the lowest remote, all stalked, erect, 2--6-flowered; perigynium very small, almost nerveless, smooth and becoming black and shining at full maturity; scale white and thin, obtuse, shorter than the perigynium.--Tufted in sandy or light soils from N. Eng. to Ky. and Neb.; frequent.

81. C. Richardsoni, R. Br. Rather stiff, 4--9' high, stoloniferous; sheaths short, purple or brown; staminate spike stout and mostly short-peduncled; pistillate spikes 1--2, approximate, the very short stalks included, erect, compact, less than 1/2' in length; perigynium obovoid, firm, hairy, the very short beak entire or erose; scale brown with a conspicuous white-hyaline margin, obtuse or pointless, and longer than the perigynium.--Dry ground, western N. Y. to Ill., and northwestward; rare.

82. C. pedunculata, Muhl. Low and diffuse, 3--10' high, forming mats; leaves abundant, very green, flat and firm, longer than the weak culms; staminate spike very small, with the uppermost pistillate spike sessile at its base; pistillate spikes 2--4 on each culm, scattered and long-peduncled from green sheaths, erect or spreading, many other spikes nearly or quite radical and very long-stalked, all 3--8-flowered; perigynium triangular-obovate, smooth or very slightly pubescent above, the short and nearly entire beak somewhat oblique; scale green or purple, truncate and cuspidate, mostly a little longer than the perigynium.--Dry woods and banks, N. Eng. to Va. (_Kennedy_) and Minn.; frequent northward.

[++][++] _Spike one or rarely a rudiment of a second; plant dioecious._

83. C. picta, Steudel. Rather weak, 1 deg. high or less; leaves flat and firm, persisting through the winter, at least twice longer than the culm; a sheathing purple scale at the base of the spike; staminate spike about 1' long, clavate in anthesis, the purple scales ending in a very short and blunt whitish tip; pistillate spike narrower and mostly longer, the scales more abruptly contracted into a colored cusp and at length deciduous; perigynium obovate, much contracted below into a stipe-like base, very strongly nerved, entirely pointless, hairy above, covered by the scale. (C. Boottiana, _Benth._)--In a wooded ravine with Hepatica and Epigaea, near Bloomington, Ind. (_Dudley_); also Ala. and La.

[*] 7. SPHAERIDIOPHORAE.--[+] 1. _Scirpinae_.

84. C. scirpoidea, Michx. Strict, the pistillate plant mostly stiff, 6--18' high; leaves flat, shorter than the culm; spike 1' long or less, densely cylindrical, very rarely with a rudimentary second spike at its base; perigynium ovate, short-pointed, very hairy, about the length of the ciliate purple scale.--Mountains of N. New Eng.; Drummond's Island, L. Huron. (Norway.)

[*] 7.--[+] 2. _Montanae_.

[++] _Some or all of the culms longer than the leaves (or in the type of n. 85 frequently shorter)._

[=] _Staminate spike minute, wholly or partially concealed in the head; leaves always very narrow; radical spikes often present._

85. C. deflexa, Hornem. Diffuse and low, tufted; culms 1--6' high, setaceous, more or less curved or spreading, little exceeding or shorter than the leaves; staminate spike exceedingly minute and nearly always entirely invisible in the head; pistillate spikes 2--3, 2--5-flowered, green, or green and brown, all aggregated into a head, the lowest one always more or less short-peduncled and subtended by a leafy bract 1/2' long or less; radical spikes few; perigynium very small and much contracted below, sparsely hairy or nearly smooth, the beak flat and very short, mostly longer than the acutish scale. (C. Novae-Angliae, last ed., mostly.)--High mountains of N. H. and Vt.

Var. Deanei, Bailey. Taller and lax, the culms 6--12' high and some or all prominently longer than the longer and loose leaves; staminate spike much larger (2--3'' long), erect or oblique, sessile; pistillate spikes larger (4--8-flowered), less aggregated or the lowest usually separated, though rarely more than 1/4' apart; radical spikes usually numerous; bract mostly longer.--Swales or dryish places, high or subalpine regions, Mt. Desert, Maine (_Rand_); Essex, Mass.; N. H., Vt., and N. Y.; scarce. In aspect like n. 86.

Var. media, Bailey. Rather stiff, 4--12' high, in dense tufts; most of the spikes equalling or exceeding the leaves, the staminate prominent, erect (3--5'' long), sessile or very short-peduncled; pistillate spikes 2--3, all scattered, the uppermost at or near the base of the staminate spike, the lowest usually very prominently peduncled and subtended by a conspicuous bract which surpasses the culm, all rather compactly 3--8-flowered, green, or brown and green; radical spikes several; perigynium larger, much like that of short-beaked forms of n. 90.--Keweenaw Co., Mich. (_Farwell_); also far westward.

86. C. varia, Muhl. Erect, mostly strict, 6--15' high, tufted and somewhat stoloniferous; culms variable in length, often twice longer than the leaves; staminate spike 3'' long or less; pistillate spikes closely aggregated, or rarely somewhat loosely disposed but never scattered, all strictly sessile, green; radical spikes none; lower bract usually present; perigynium longer-pointed than in the last, about the length of the sharp scale. (C. Emmonsii, _Dewey_.)--Banks and dry woods; frequent.--In var. COLORATA, Bailey, the scales are purple. Mostly southward.

[=][=] _Staminate spike very prominent (or in the variety of n. 89 very small, but the leaves broad); radical spikes none._

[a.] _Scales smooth._

87. C. Novae-Angliae, Schwein. Very slender and soft, erect, stoloniferous, 6--8' high; culms little longer than the very narrow leaves; staminate spike exceedingly narrow (3--8'' long by about 1/2'' wide), mostly minutely peduncled; pistillate spikes 2, or rarely 3, the upper one near the base of the staminate spike, the lower very short-peduncled and removed 1/2--1' and subtended by a leafy bract which nearly or quite equals the culm, both rather loosely 3--6-flowered; perigynium very narrow, often nearly oblanceolate, small, very thinly hairy, the beak sharp and prominent; stigmas often 2.--Mountain swamps of W. Mass., and Mt. Desert, Maine (_Rand_); rare.

88. C. Pennsylvanica, Lam. A foot high or less, erect, strongly stoloniferous, forming large patches; leaves narrow and more or less involute, dark or dull green, mostly nearly as long as the culm; staminate spike 1/2' (rarely 3/4') long, usually dull brown or brown-purple, sessile or very nearly so; pistillate spikes 1--3, contiguous or the two lower rarely 1/2' apart, all sessile and usually dark-colored, the lowest bract very short or at least rarely prominent; perigynium short- or round-ovate, hairy.--Dry fields; our commonest species.

89. C. communis, Bailey. Habitually taller and stricter, 8--18' high, in small tufts, never stoloniferous; leaves proportionately shorter, broad (about 2''), flat and pale; staminate spike mostly longer, often short-peduncled and usually paler; pistillate spikes 2--4, scattered on the upper part of the culm, green or tawny, the lowest one or two sometimes peduncled and often with prominent leafy bracts. (C. varia, last ed.)--Dry hill-sides; common.

Var. Wheeleri, Bailey. Mostly greener, 3--14' high; leaves soft and flat and much shorter than the culm; staminate spike 1/4' long or less, very narrow, sessile and oblique; pistillate spikes mostly closer together.--Knolls in woods, Ionia Co., Mich. (_Wheeler_), and Alcona Co. (_Bailey_); Middletown, Conn. (_Barratt_), and Cheshire Co., N. H. It has much the aspect of n. 86, but is readily distinguished by the broad leaves and more scattered spikes.

[b.] _Scales rough-cuspidate._