126 



been collected by Bigelow in 1853-4 '^^ the Whipple Expedition 

 from "Fort Smith to the Rio Grande." Elihu Hall secured it 

 on June 6, 1872, in swamps at Hempstead, Texas (No. 734) ; and 

 B. F. Bush collected excellent specimens (No. 993) at Catale, 

 Indian Territory, now Oklahoma, on May 22, 1895. These 

 specimens in the Columbia University herbarium have been 

 taken as the type. Mr. Palmer's specimens (No. 3405) were 

 collected on May 21, 191 1, in wet sandy soil near Jasper, Missouri, 

 and were distributed as Car ex conjuncta Boott. The other speci- 

 mens referred to were all distributed as Carex stipata Muhl. 



A detailed description of this species follows, which may be 

 known as 



Carex Oklahomensis, sp. nov. 



Culms cespitose, 3.5-8 dm. high, 4-6 mm. wide at base, 1.5 

 mm. beneath head, slender but stiff, sharply triangular, rough 

 above, not wing-angled or strongly flattened in drying, exceeding 

 leaves, aphyllopodic, brownish at base, the rootstocks fibrillose. 

 Leaves with well-developed blades 3-4 to a culm, the blades flat, 

 thickish, 2.5-5 mm. wide, up to 4 dm. long, serrulate on margins 

 towards apex as well as roughened on veins, the sheaths tight, 

 strongly green and white mottled dorsally but not conspicuously 

 septate nodulose, ventrally white-hyaline not red-dotted or 

 cross-rugulose, thin, and soon ruptured, exceeding base of 

 blade. Head 4-7 cm. long, about 15 mm. wide, oblong-cylindric, 

 with numerous spikes, continuous or somewhat interrupted 

 below, the basal branches compound, appressed, sessile or short- 

 peduncled, the upper simple, closely aggregated and scarcely 

 distinguishable; lower one or two bracts prolonged, setaceous, 

 the others scale-like. Spikes androgynous, subglobose, 5-8 mm. 

 long, nearly as wide, with some 6-12 appressed-ascending 

 perigynia and inconspicuous staminate flowers. Scales ovate 

 or lance-ovate, as wide as but shorter than perigynia, chestnut 

 brown tinged with hyaline margins and prominent midvein 

 excurrent as a cusp. Perigynia lance-ovate, 4-5 mm. long, 1.75 

 mm. wide, plano-convex, thick, the walls thin, spongy and sub- 

 turgid at base, green or in age greenish-straw-colored but not 

 brownish, dorsally conspicuously 7-10 nerved, ventrally less con- 

 spicuously fewer nerved, sharp-edged to the truncate sub-cordate 

 base, stipitate, tapering to a serrulate deeply bidentate beak 

 shorter than body, at apex reddish-brown tinged, and with a 

 suture on the outer side. Achenes lenticular, yellow, stipitate, 



