Carex basiantha
Syn. Pl. Glumac. 2: 232. 1855.
Culms spreading to nodding, (10.7–) 18–39 cm, 0.5–0.8 of total plant height. Leaves: basal sheaths pale-brown to dark-brown; blades green, exceeding culms, 1.4–3.7 mm wide, herbaceous, margins green, smooth or scabrous. Lateral spikes 1–4, basal, on nodding peduncles. Terminal spikes with staminate portion 4–61-flowered, (4–) 12.7–25.6 × 0.7–1.4 mm; pistillate portion 2–4 (–6) -flowered. Pistillate scales green, sometimes tinged with white or reddish-brown, (0.9–) 1.2–2.4 mm wide, apex attenuate to green awns; distal scales with hyaline margins 0.3–0.8 mm wide, not more than 1.5 times as wide as and not concealing perigynia, apex acute, awnless. Staminate scales green or tinged with light-brown, ovate, 2.2–3.9 × 1.6–2 mm, margins free but enfolding scales above, hyaline, white, apex obtuse, erose. Anthers 0.8–1.5 mm. Perigynia pale green to pale-brown, often speckled reddish-brown, narrowly ovoid or lanceovoid, (5.8–) 6.2–7.6 (–8) × 1.4–2 mm, tightly enveloping achenes, apex gradually tapering; beak (2.5–) 2.7–3.7 (–4.3) mm, scabrous. Stigmas filiform, flexuous, long, slender, strongly papillose. Achenes brown, oblong, (2.4–) 2.6–3 (–3.4) × (1.3–) 1.5–1.7 (–1.9) mm.
Phenology: Fruiting spring–summer (mid Mar–mid Jul).
Habitat: Neutral or slightly acidic soils in mesic to wet mesic deciduous forests, usually on lower slopes above flood plains of rivers and streams
Elevation: 50–1000 m
Distribution
Ala., Ark., Fla., Ga., La., Miss., N.C., Okla., S.C., Tenn., Tex.
Discussion
Selected References
None.
Lower Taxa
"shortened" is not a number."widest" is not a number.