Perennial with very short rhizome. Stems tufted, firm, rigid, trigonous, smooth, much shorter than the inflorescence, 1-5(-10) cm by c. 2 mm (see Notes). Leaves surpassing the stems, canaliculate to conduplicate, rigid, often recurved, gradually acuminate, more or less scaberulous at the top, 2-5(-8) mm wide; lower sheaths purplish. Inflorescence simple or compound, loose. Involucral bracts 5-7, patent, shorter than to equalling the primary rays, up to 30 cm long. Primary rays 4-7, remarkably long, spreading, firm, smooth, up to 30 cm. Spikelets 8-15(-30) together in globose or subglobose clusters 8-20 (rarely more) mm ø, sometimes a few binate or solitary, stellately spreading, lanceolate to linear, turgid, acute, 4-6(-32)-flowered, 5-10(-20) by 3-4 mm; rachilla slightly flexuous, persistent, narrowly winged; internodes 3/5-4/5 mm. Glumes chartaceous, appressed, broadly ovate, keeled only towards the top, strongly 11-13-nerved, c. 3 mm long and wide, ½ imbricate, with short, more or less excurved mucro, green, straight or curved keel, rufous to sanguineous sides and narrow whitish hyaline margins. Stamens 3; anthers linear, with short, smooth, reddish appendage of the connective. Style c. 1 mm, ciliate; stigmas 3. Nut trigonous, ellipsoid, broadly stipitate, very shortly apiculate, shining brownish black, 1½-1¾ by c. 1 mm.
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Perennials. Rhizomes very short. Culms tufted, 1.5-5[-8] cm tall, 3-angled, smooth. Leaves longer than culm; sheath purplish brown, very short; leaf blade 2-8 mm wide, stiff, usually folded. Involucral bracts 3-7, leaflike, equaling or shorter than inflorescence. Inflorescence a simple or compound anthela; rays 3-8, mostly 15-18 cm, sometimes with raylets; raylets usually less than 1 cm or mostly 2-3 cm. Capitulum of 8-30 spikelets congested at apex of rays or raylets, globose, 0.8-2.5 cm in diam. Spikelets ovoid, narrowly ovoid, or narrowly oblong-ovoid, 5-12 × 2-5 mm, 4-20-flowered; rachilla wingless. Glumes pale and purplish striate or purplish red on both surfaces, densely imbricate, broadly ovate, 3.5-4 mm, papery, 11-13-veined, keel abaxially green, apex recurved mucronate. Stamens 3; anthers broadly linear. Style long; stigmas 3. Nutlet blackish brown, broadly ellipsoid, ca. 1/2 as long as subtending glume, triquetrous, slightly concave on 3 sides, with dense punctate processes. Fl. and fr. Jul-Oct.
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