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General:
Perennial, tufted herb from creeping rhizomes; stems 5-20 cm tall, equalling to slightly longer than the leaves.
Leaves:
Sheaths with longitudinal lines on the outer sides, blunt at the mouths, with short ligules; blades 5 to 9 per stem, in-rolled, thread-like, borne on the lower 1/4 of the stems, 0.3-0.5 mm wide, the lower ones lacking or reduced to scales.
Flowers:
Spikes solitary, with both female and male flowers, the few male flowers towards the tips, the spikes broadly egg-shaped, 10-15 mm long, 6-10 mm wide, erect; bractless.
Fruits:
Perigynia egg-shaped, 4.5-5 mm long, 1.8-2.3 mm wide, straw-coloured or brown, inflated, smooth, shiny, membranaceous, nerveless, short-stalked, the beaks short, bidentate; female scales egg-shaped, usually slightly shorter than the perigynia, sharp-pointed or awned, reddish-brown, brown or straw-coloured, the centres lighter, the margins translucent; stigmas 3; achenes 3-angled, 1.2-1.5 mm long.
Notes:
Further study may indicate that this species is better treated as a variety of C. breweri.
Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
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