62 
CYPERACEAE. 
1. Perigynia compressed; scales very dark. 
Spikes all gynaecandrous or the lateral pistillate; stigmata 3 (except some¬ 
times in C. misandra ). 
Spikes all gynaecandrous. 12. Melananthae. 
Lateral spikes pistillate. 
Spikes sessile or nearly so. 12. Melananthae. 
Spikes long-peduncled. 18. Stenocarpae. 
Terminal spike staminate, the lateral pistillate or the uppermost of these 
staminate or androgynous. 
Stigmata 3 ; spikes oblong. 35. C. Raynoldsii. 
Stigmata 2; spikes cylindrical. 13. Microrhynchae. 
2. Perigynia turgid. 
Spikes 2-4, all gynaecandrous, dark brown; perigynia gibbous, papillose. 
14. Aeorastachyae. 
Spikes several; the terminal and sometimes the uppermost of the lateral 
ones staminate ; the rest pistillate or in C. Backii all androgynous. 
Perigynia glabrous ; spikes peduncled. 
Beak short or none; spikes erect, loosely flowered; perigynia nerved. 
15. Cenchrocarpae. 
Beak prominent, bifid or bidentate. 
Spikes not very densely flowered, drooping; perigynia faintly nerved, 
erect or slightly spreading. 23. Hymenochlaenae. 
Spikes densely flowered, erect; perigynia nerved, squarose at ma¬ 
turity. 24. Spirostachyae. 
Perigynia pubescent. 
Pistillate spikes few-flowered, roundish ; perigynia obovate to globose, 
obscurely nerved; bracts foliaceous but sheathless. 
21. Sphaeridiophorae. 
Pistillate spikes cylindric, dense-flowered; perigynia ovate or ovate- 
lanceolate, nerved; bracts sheathing. 22. Trichocarpae. 
II. Perigynia inflated and tapering into a long beak. 
Perigynia abruptly contracted into a very long, slender beak. 
* 66 . C. longirostris. 
Perigynia gradually tapering into the beak. 
Perigynia, at least the lower, reflexed at maturity, sessile; bracts sheathing. 
25. Echinostachyae. 
Perigynia not reflexed. 
Bracts sheathless; perigynia sessile. 26. Physocarpae. 
Bracts sheathing; perigynia stipitate. 27. Rhynchophorae. 
1 . VIGNEAE. Stigmata 2. Spikes all or nearly all bisexual or dioecious, 
sessile. 
1. Brachystachyae. 
Spikes several, short and few-flowered, sessile, remote, light-green; scales 
hyaline; perigynium erect, several-nerved, spongious at the base. 
Spikes gynaecandrous (i. e., pistillate above, staminate below) ; bracts inconspic¬ 
uous ; perigynium light-green, ovate, tapering into a short, almost entire beak. 
1. C. canescens. 
Spikes androgynous ( i . e., staminate above, pistillate below) ; bracts narrow, but 
conspicuous ; perigynium shining reddish-brown, abruptly-beaked. 
2. C. tenella. 
2. Neurochlaenae. 
Spike single, androgynous, shining reddish-brown; perigynium erect, ob¬ 
long, faintly nerved, scabrous along the short hyaline beak, with the orifice 
slit on the convex face. 
One species. 
3. C. nardina. 
