are so close they are only a little narrower than the internerve spaces (some 

 of these ending so the upper part with fewer nerves than the lower), basally 

 slightly tapered and narrowly rounded, apically broadly rounded or very obtuse, 

 essentially beakless with a nearly entire orifice (after drying the apex often some- 

 what conical instead of rounded but still essentially beakless); achene triangular, 

 apiculate, up to 3 mm. long, 2 mm. wide, jointed with the style which entirely 

 withers after anthesis. Incl. var. globosa (Bailey) Bailey, var. rigida Fern, and 

 var. turgida Fern., "C. grisea" of many authors, not Wahl., C. Bulbostylis Mack. 

 In moist soil and woodlands, in wet soil along streams in forests, alluvial 

 forests and ravines, in Okla. {Waterfall), in e., s.e. and n.-cen. Tex., infrequent 

 to rare in moist areas of e. part of Edwards Plateau, spring; from Fla. to Tex., n. 

 to Del., Pa., Tenn. and Ark. Seeming to grade somewhat into C. flaccosperma. 



82. Carex flaccosperma Dew. Fig. 282. 



Tufted perennial; culms (14-) 25-40 (-60) cm. long, erect; basal sheaths usually 

 glaucous to pale-brownish with reduced blades; cauline leaves few, 4-10 mm. 

 broad, membranous, pale-green or glaucous-green; spikes usually 5, less commonly 

 4; terminal spike very inconspicuous, staminate, nearly sessile or short-peduncled, 

 7-35 mm. long, 1-3 mm. thick, stramineous, the scales broadly hyaline; other 

 spikes pistillate (the highest one subterminal and nearly sessile or short-peduncled 

 and attached near the base of the staminate spike, the others more or less remote 

 on slender peduncles 1-15 cm. long), 12-50 mm. long, about 7 mm. thick, with 

 8 to 32 ascending perigynia which are close enough to overlap (except occasionally 

 the lowermost); bracts foliaceous, with definite loose sheaths, the blades greatly 

 surpassing the spikes; scales brownish-hyaline, ovate, less than half as long as 

 the perigynia, acute to very short-cuspidate; perigynia slenderly obovoid to ovoid- 

 fusiform, in transection nearly round when fresh (but after drying often obtusely 

 triangular), 4-5 mm. long, inflated, brown-membranous, in the lower half with 

 47 to 60 nerves which are so close they are only a little (if at all) narrower than 

 the internerve spaces (some of them ending so the upper part has fewer than the 

 lower), basally slightly tapered and narrowly rounded, apically tapered and nar- 

 rowly rounded or acute, essentially beakless, with a nearly entire orifice; achene 

 triangular, up to 2.5 mm. long, 1.7 mm. wide, apiculate, jointed with the style 

 which entirely withers after anthesis. 



In moist sandy soil in wooded areas, swampy grounds, wet rocky stream banks, 

 wet woodlands, in Okla. (Pittsburg Co.), in e. and s.e. Tex., infrequent in n.-cen. 

 Tex., spring; s.e. U.S. n. to Va., Tenn. and Mo., w. to Okla. and Tex. 



Fam. 26. Palmae Juss. Palm Family 



Trees, shrubs or perennial vines, endogenous in growth; leaves persistent and 

 often shedding after withering and natural breaking of the petioles, in some 

 detaching cleanly from sheathing base of the petiole and leaving rings on the 

 trunk; leaf blades firm and durable, sometimes entire but mostly pinnate or 

 palmate, the ultimate divisions with strong midrib and lesser parallel lateral veins; 

 inflorescence or spadix various, ordinarily a long branching structure issuing from 

 axils of present or of fallen leaves, each branch subtended by a bract or nodi- 

 frond or in some cases enclosed in a woody spathelike structure or cymba; 

 flowers paleaceous and very small in proportion to size of plant, perfect or uni- 

 sexual, usually 3-merous or multiples thereof; calyx 3-parted or tridentate, some- 

 times subtended by involucral bracts; corolla polypetalous or gamopetalous; 

 stamens 3, 6 or multiples thereof; pistils 1 to 3 in most species, ripening into a 

 drupelike or fleshy fruit of many sizes and shapes, the exterior pulp sometimes 

 edible, commonly with only 1 seed coming to maturity; seed a hard body often 



555 



