General:
Perennial, loosely tufted herb from long-creeping rhizomes; stems 30-150 cm tall, exceeding the leaves, smooth, reddish-tinged at the bases.

Leaves:
Lower sheaths breaking into threads, the middle to upper sheaths long stiff-hairy all around or sometimes only towards the summits; ligules conspicuous; blades flat, 4-10 mm wide, smooth or often stiff-hairy on the lower side towards the bases, cross-walled.

Flowers:
Spikes 4 to 10, the upper 2 to 6 with male flowers, separate, unstalked, erect, narrowly linear, 2-6 cm long, the lower 2 to 4 with female flowers, widely separated, short-stalked, erect, narrowly cylindrical, 3-10 cm long; bracts subtending the male spikes reduced or lacking, those subtending the female flowers leaflike and well developed, longer than the inflorescence.

Fruits:
Perigynia ascending, lanceolate to broadly egg-shaped, 7-10 mm long, 1.7-2.5 mm wide, yellowish-green or light brownish, smooth, somewhat inflated, many-nerved, the beaks bidentate, toothed, the spreading teeth 1.2-3 mm long; female scales narrowly egg-shaped, shorter or longer than the perigynia, awn-tipped, the awns nearly as long as the scales, dull reddish-brown with 3-nerved green centres; stigmas 3; achenes 3-angled, 2-2.5 mm long.

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.

Illustration Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Flower Colour:
Green

Blooming Period:
Late Spring

Fruit/Seed characteristics:
Colour: Brown
Present over the Summer

Source:  The USDA