General:
Perennial, densely tufted herb from fibrous roots; stems 30-80 cm tall, densely clustered, roughened on the angles above, longer than the leaves.

Leaves:
Sheaths tight; blades 2 or 3 per stem, borne on the lower 1/4 of the stem, flat or channeled below, 1.5-3.5 mm wide.

Flowers:
Spikes 4 to 8, densely aggregated into an egg- or globe-shaped, 1- to 2-cm long head, the spikes not distinguishable below, unstalked, with both female and male flowers, the inconspicuous male flowers towards the tips; bracts lacking or a rudimentary.

Fruits:
Perigynia egg-shaped, 3.4-5 mm long, 1.5-2.5 mm wide, convex and nerved above, concave and nerveless below, green, smooth, very short-stalked, finely toothed on the upper 1/2, the beaks 1/3 the length of the bodies, bidentate; female scales egg-shaped, equalling or slightly shorter than the perigynia, pointed, brown, the midribs greenish, the margins translucent; stigmas 2; achenes lens-shaped, smooth, 1.8-2 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