Home
Tufted or shortly rhizomatous, grass-like, annual or perennial. Stems usually compressed, ± winged. Leaves linear, distichous, equitant, basal and cauline. Inflorescence of several subumbellate clusters of 2-many pedicellate flowers emerging successively from a usually 2-valved spathe. Flowers small, cream, blue or violet, rarely white, delicate and fugacious, closing at night, usually cup-shaped below, spreading above; lobes free almost to base, ± equal, often apiculate, outer wider than inner. Stamens inserted at base of perianth, filaments usually united in a cylindrical tube. Style-branches entire. Capsules globose, exserted from spathe-values on elongate filiform pedicels. Seeds numerous, globose, black, ± pitted. Spp. c. 100, mostly of N. and S. America, 1 from Hawaii, 1 from Ireland. Adventive spp. 4.
Perianth subrotate, the tep alike and spreading, retuse or abruptly aristulate, distinct or very shortly connate at base; filaments connate at least to the middle (to the top in our spp.); style-branches filiform, alternating with the stamens; capsule globose to obovoid, loculicidal; seeds black, globular, ± pitted; low, perennial, grass-like herbs, usually tufted from fibrous roots; lvs equitant, linear and mostly basal; scape-like stems 2-edged or 2-winged, simple or branched from the axils of lf-like bracts; fls delicate and fugacious, in umbel-like clusters from 2-valved spathes, blue to violet or pink, seldom white, rarely yellow, our spp. regularly with a yellow or greenish eye. Our spp. fl chiefly in May, but continue until Sept. 60±, New World.
Annuals, or rhizomatous, evergreen perennials. Stems flattened or rarely terete. Leaves basal and cauline, equitant, linear. Inflorescence of 1 to several rhipidia each with 2-6 pedicellate flowers emerging successively from paired leaf-like spathes; bracteoles concealed by spathes. Flowers actinomorphic, fugacious. Sepals and petals almost free, equal in length, the sepals often slightly wider than petals, forming a cup around stamens and style, spreading above. Stamens included; filaments usually connate; anthers dorsifixed. Ovary rounded; style deeply trifid, branches entire, filiform; stigmas terminal, minute. Capsule globose to trigonous; pedicel long, filiform. Seeds numerous, pitted; aril absent. [See also Green (1994: 515).]
Small or mediocre herbs with fibrous or tuberous roots; leaves basal or both basal and cauline, ensiform to linear-ensiform, equitant; flowering stem leafless or leafy, simple or branched, bearing a cluster of few to several rather small pedi-cellate flowers partly enclosed by 2 more or less foliaceous equitant spathes; perianth with a short tube above the ovary, the segments equal or subequal, petaloid, more or less spreading above the base; stamens 3, inserted at the base of the perianth; filaments free or more or less connate; anthers versatile; ovary globose to turbinate or oblongoid, 3-celled; style subulate; stigmas 3; fruit a loculicidally 3-valved capsule.
Tufted grass-like annual. Stems 10-15-(20) cm × ± 1 mm, simple, or jointed and branched. Leaves < stems, 1-2 mm wide. Flowers c. 7.5 mm long, ± 6 mm diam., up to 8 in clusters within ± equal spathe-valves, yellowish-cream to yellow, internally with a reddish-purple band forming a 6-pointed star, externally with median purplish stripe above, pubescent below; lobes oblong-acuminate. Capsule c. 3 × 3 mm, glabrous, ± flattened, grey-green, becoming reddish. Seeds black, c. 0.7 mm long.
Caespitose to rhizomatous herbs. Inflorescences axillary or terminal in panicles of fan-shaped and few-flowered cymes or of many-flowered clusters, each with 1-2 spathes. Flowers actinomorphic, pedicelled, bluish or yellowish. Tepals subequal, shortly connate at the base. Stamens 3, united into a tube at the base, rarely nearly free. Ovary: style trifid, the lobes filiform; stigmas 3, small, alternating with the outer tepals. Capsules exserted. Seeds small, globose.
Tufted grass-like perennial. Stems simple or branched, compressed, narrowly winged, c. 1 mm diam., cauline leaf at each node. Leaves linear, ensiform, basal 2-3 mm wide, cauline narrower. Flowers ± 1 cm long, to 1.5 cm diam., in clusters of 1-3 within ± equal spathe-valves, blue internally with yellow band and throat, externally with dark indistinct purple stripes above, pubescent below. Capsule c. 3 × 3 mm, glabrous, red-brown. Seeds ± 1 mm long, black, ± 3-angled.
