580 CYPERACEJE. (SEDGE FAMILY.) 



Var. mirabilis, Boott, has broadly ovate perigynia with a shorter beak, 

 longer than the acute scale. (C. festucacea, var. mirabilis of former editions. 

 C. mirabilis, Dew.) — Mass. to Ohio, &c. 



42. C. adtista, Boott (not of former ed.). Spikes 4-10, pale or brown, 

 globular, or the upper club-shaped, the lower remote and sometimes compound ; 

 perigynia oval, ovate, or roundish, gradually tapering to a beak, many-nerved, with 

 the narrow wing wider above the middle, turgid at maturity, equalling the scale 

 in length and breadth; achenium large, orbicular, sessile. (C. argyrantha, 

 Tuckerm., is a very delicate form of this, found in rocky woods.) — Moist copses, 

 &c, from Rhode Island (Olney) and New Jersey (Kneiskem), northward and 

 westward : rare. 



43. C. fOBnea, Willd. Spikes 3-8, pale or silvery green, finally straw-col- 

 ored, mostly approximate, ovoid, generally acute, the uppermost contracted or 

 club-shaped at the sterile base; perigynia oval, orbicular or obovate, short-beaked, 

 broadly winged, oppressed, transversely wrinkled, a little longer than the ovate 

 or lanceolate white scale ; achenium on a short stalk, oval. — Sandy and mostly 

 salt or brackish marshes, &c, along the coast, from New England southward. 



Var. ? ferruginea, referred here by Dr. Boott, with rusty-colored acute 

 spikes, and longer-beaked perigynia, generally acutish at base and exceeding 

 the acute or mucronate scale (Ohio, Sullicant), connects this with C. straminea. 



Var.? sabuldnum, also referred here by Dr. Boott, has 2-10 drooping 

 rather remote spikes, more or less obovate or club-shaped, contracted at base, 

 pale green turning straw-color ; perigynia broadly winged at base, slightly ex- 

 ceeding the pointed scale : it is C. adiista of former editions, not of Boott. — 

 Sands of the sea-shore from Maine southward. — Leaves narrow, often involute. 



44. C. Straminea, Schk. Spikes 2-12, pale or tawny, varying from obo- 

 vate-globnlar to club-shaped, contiguous or rather remote ; perigynia orbicidar- 

 ovate or oval, often heart-shaped at base, very flat, abruptly contracted into a short 

 or tapering into a longer beak, winged, much wider and commonly longer than 

 the usually acute or pointed scale ; achenium nearly sessile, oval. — Open 

 grounds and borders of Avoods : common, and very variable. The following are 

 the varieties designated by Dr. Boott. — Var. typica, with 3-6 roundish spikes ; 

 perigynia spreading, broadly winged, rather longer and much broader than the 

 scale. — Var. tenera, more slender and delicate, with 3-6 smaller oval or ob- 

 ovate spikes, more tawny ; perigynia with a short and bi-oad beak, rather longei 

 and broader than the scale. (C. tenera, Dew. C. festucacea, var. tenera, o\ 

 former cd., in part.) — Var. aperta. Spikes 4-8, tawny, tapering at base, 

 drooping; perigynia long-beaked, thrice the length of the very sharp-pointed 

 scale, loosely spreading in the spike. — Var. festucacea. Spikes 5-8, club- 

 shaped, tawny or greenish ; perigynia abruptly short-beaked and mostly nar- 

 rowly winged, longer than the acute or mucronate scale; plant tall and rather 

 rigid. (C. festucacea, Schk., and former ed.) — Var. htalina, a chiefly West- 

 ern form, approaching the next species, with larger and thick pale spikes, usu- 

 ally 6, all tapering at base; perigynia greenish, with a wide spongy wing, and 

 a long beak, about tAviee the length of the broAvn pointless scale ; rather tall and 

 stout, with broad leaA'es. (C. straminea, var. Crawei, Boott; but probably by 

 some mistake said to be collected in Michigan by the late Dr. Crawe. C. hya- 



