North American Cyperacca. 253 



C. csBspit I'u'-, Torr.! cat. pi- ^- York, p. 89, (not o{ Poiret) \ 

 Spreng. ! syst. 1. p. 224. 



C 'V oney anns, Schult men t 2. p. !01. 



C. tenuis, Muhl. ! gram. p. 22. (in part.) 



Perennial. Culms 4 — 12 inches high, forming dense tufts. Leaves 

 narrow, nearly as tall as the culm. Umbel sometimes very distinctly * 

 rayed, the rays 3 — 4 in number, usually very short. Involucre of two 

 short and two very long leaves. Sjnkelets alternate, sometimes com- 

 pound, closely approximated on the rachis, nearly an inch in length, and 

 a line and a half broad, much compressed, very acute. Scales loosely 

 imbricated, especially when the spikes are mature, rather cartilagin- 

 ous, very minutely three-toothed at the tip ; the sides of a yellowish- 

 brown colour, the keel green. Stamens always 2. Style deeply two- 

 parted. Nut gray or light-brown, narrow-obovate, and almost truncated 

 at the apex; under a strong lens somewhat roughened with minute 

 elevated dots. 



Hab. On the borders of salt marshes; very abundant in 

 the vicinity of New York ! and along the coast of New Jersey ! 

 North Carolina, Mr. Curtis! ; Charleston, South Carolina, 

 B. D. Greene, Esq. ! ; Alabama, Dr. Gates ! ; New Orleans, 

 Dr. IngaUs! 



4. Cyperus flavicomus, Michx. 



Umbel many-rayed, somewhat compound ; spikelets lanceo- 

 late-linear, numerous, many- (12 — 30)-flowered, spreading; 

 scales oblong, very obtuse, with a broad scarious margin, when 

 mature distinct, and somewhat spreading ; stamens 3 ; nut 

 obovate, with a short abrupt point. 



C. flavicomus, Michx.! fl. 1. p. 27; Pursh, fl. 1. p. 53; Elliott! 

 sk. 1. p. 71 ; Muhl. ! gram. p. 24 ; ValiU emim. 2. p. 260 ; Rain. S^- 

 Schult. syst. 2. p. 215. 



Annual? CwZ/n, 1-3 feet high, triangular, hivolucrc 3 — 5-leaved, very 

 long, somewhat glaucous. Umbel spreading ; rays about five, 2 — 3 inches 

 long. Spikelets three-fourths of an inch long, and one and a half line wide ; 

 on the lower part of the rachis compound, spreading horizontally or even 

 reflexed, when old. Scales somewhat emarginate, the sides light yel- 

 lowish-brown, with a green three-nerved keel, and a conspicuous white 



