C18 CYPERACE^. (SEDGE FAMILY.) 



un the outer face, rather faintly nerved on the inner, rough-edged above, 

 sharply toothed, spreading, a little longer than the scale. — Cold swamps and 

 lake-borders, N. Eng. and eastern X. Y. to X. J, ; rare. 



* 12. HvPARRHEN^i:. — t- 1. Elougotce. 



t-+ Perigijniuin very sharp-margined , firm, often thickened at base, spreading in 

 open and at maturity stellate spikes. 



118. C. eehinata, Murray, var. cephalantha, Bailey. Hather stiff 

 but slender, 1-2° high; leaves very narrow and involute, about the length of 

 the culm ; spikes 5-8, approximate or even aggregated into a head, green, 

 compactly 1 5 - 30-flowered, short-oblong or nearly globular; perigyuium ovate- 

 lanceolate, rough on the margins above, nerved on both faces, spreading or 

 reflexed at maturity, the beak long and prominent, longer than the sharp 

 white scale. (C. stellulata, last ed.) — E. Penn. {Porter) to Mass. [Morong), 

 and westward to L. Superior ; rare. — Var. conferta, Bailey. Very stiff ; 

 spikes contiguous or scattered, spreading, short-oblong or globular, dense; 

 perigynium broadly ovate or even nearly round-ovate, very strongly nerved, 

 reflexed or widely spreading. X'ear the sea-coast; uncommon. The peri- 

 gynia resemble those of n. 112. — Var. microstachys, Boeckl. Mostly very 

 slender ; spikes few, 3 - 10-flowered, usually tawny ; perigyuium small, lance- 

 ovate, nerved on the outer face but usually nerveless on the inner, erect or 

 spreading, the beak rather long or prominent. (C. scirpoides, Schkuhr C 

 sterilis, Willd.) Swales, throughout ; very common and variable. — Var. ax- 

 gustIta, Bailey. Exceedingly slender; spikes few and very few-flowered, 

 mostly all contiguous ; perigynium lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, twice the 

 length of the scale or more. N. Y., Vt., and northward ; rare. 



++ ++ Perigynium scarcely sharp-margined, thin in texture, not thickened at base, 

 mostly in closely flowered and rounded or oblong spikes. 



= Perigynium ovate or nearly so, the beak short or none. 

 a. Bracts not prolonged. 



119. C. canescens, L. Stiff and rather stout, 1 - 2|° high, glaucous and 

 pale throughout, growing in stools; spikes -A -8, globular or oblong, very 

 densely 20-50-fiowered, approximate or somewhat scattered on the upper 

 part of the culm, usually prominently contracted below with the staminate 

 flowers ; perigynium short-ovate, silvery-white and minutely puncticulate, 

 never thickened at base, faintly few^-nerved, smooth throughout, ascending, 

 the beak very short and entire ; scale obtuse or acutish, about tlie length of 

 the perigynium. — Cool swamps and bogs, N. Eng. to Penn., west and north- 

 ward ; frequent northw^ard. (Eu.) 



Var. vulgaris, Bailey. Very slender, low^er, not glaucous, in small and 

 loose tufts; spikes smaller and usually fewer, loosely flowered; perigynium 

 mostly more beaked, prominently spreading. — Mostly in drier places ; very 

 common. Perigynium much shorter than in any form of n. 118. 



Var. alpieola, Wahl. Low and stiff, or at lower altitudes becoming some- 

 what slender, seldom much over 1° in height ; spikes small, globular or nearly 

 so, dense, well defined and brown or tawny ; perigynium as in the type, ascend- 

 ing. (C. vitilis, Fries.) — Mountains from X. Eng. to Ga., sparingly along 

 our northern boundar}', and far westward. (Eu.) 



