General: Perennial, loosely tufted herb from short to elongate, extensive rhizomes; stems erect, 25-75 cm long.
Leaves: Located on the lower parts of the stem extending at least halfway up, flat, 1.5-3 mm wide, lacking cross-walls, with ear-shaped lobes.
Flowers: Inflorescence terminal, 3-15 cm long, loosely branched, the branches ascending, the flowers each with 2 involucral bractlets; perianth segments dark brown with greenish midribs, 3-4.5 mm long, rounded, blunt, with incurved, hooded tips, the inner about the same length as the outer; stamens 6; anthers 1.3-1.6 mm long, about 3 times the length of the filaments.
Fruits: Capsules, egg-shaped, equal to or just slightly surpassing the perianth segments; seeds pear-shaped, about 0.5-0.6 mm long, lacking tail-like appendages.
Wet tidal flats in the lowland zone and moist streamsides in the montane zone; infrequent in SW BC, disjunct E to MB, ON, PQ and NF, and S to MA, PA, VA, KY, MO, KS, CO, UT and WA; Eurasia, New Zealand.
