Carex sect. Lamprochlaenae

(Drejer) L. H. Bailey in J. M. Coulter

in J. M. Coulter, Man. Bot. Rocky Mt., 377. 1885.

Basionym: Lamprochlaenae Drejer Symb. Caricol., 10. 1844
Treatment appears in FNA Volume 23.

Plants densely or loosely cespitose, short to long rhizomatous. Culms red or purple at base. Leaves: basal sheaths fibrous or not; sheath fronts membranous; sheaths and larger leaves sometimes septate-nodulose; blades V-shaped in cross-section when young, widest leaf-blades 1–2 mm wide, glabrous. Inflorescences racemose, with 2–4 (–5) spikes; bracts sheathless or short-sheathing, less than 4 mm, scalelike or with short threadlike blade; lateral spikes pistillate, subsessile to short-pedunculate, prophyllate; terminal spike staminate. Proximal pistillate scales white-hyaline or redbrown, apex obtuse to acuminate. Perigynia ascending to spreading, veinless or obscurely veined with 2 distinct marginal veins, ovate to obovate, rounded-trigonous in cross-section, base tapering or rounded and shortly stipitate, apex to abrupt beak, glabrous; beak 0.3–0.9 mm, orifice entire or shortly bidentate. Stigmas 3. Achenes trigonous, almost as large as bodies of perigynia; styles deciduous.

Distribution

North America, Eurasia, and nw Africa

Discussion

Species 12 (2 in the flora).

K. K. Mackenzie (1931–1935, parts 2–3, pp. 182, 221) did not recognize the section. He placed C. supina in sect. Obtusatae and C. glacialis in sect. Petraeae (sect. Rupestres). Other authors have not associated these species with unispicate species and, recently, sect. Lamprochlaenae has been recognized, although circumscription of the section has varied (V. I. Kreczetowicz 1935; A. O. Chater 1980; T. V. Egorova 1999). The circumscription followed here is that proposed by Egorova.

Selected References

None.

Key

1 Perigynia yellow-green to brown, 2.5–3.3 × 1.2–2 mm; staminate scales 3–4.5 mm, light brown; plants loosely cespitose, usually long-rhizomatous. Carex supina
1 Perigynia reddish black to dark brown distally, 1.5–2.5 × 0.9–1.2 mm; staminate scales 2–3 mm, reddish black or dark brown; plants densely cespitose, short-rhizomatous. Carex glacialis

"shortened" is not a number.

trigonous +
obtuse;acuminate +
Peter W. Ball +  and David F. Murray +
(Drejer) L. H. Bailey in J. M. Coulter +
not +  and fibrous +
rounded +  and tapering +
Lamprochlaenae +
0.03 cm0.3 mm <br />3.0e-4 m <br /> (0.09 cm0.9 mm <br />9.0e-4 m <br />) +
thread-like +  and v--shaped +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (2 cm20 mm <br />0.02 m <br />) +
short-sheathing +  and sheathless +
2-ranked +  and arranged +
ascending +  and appressed +
with short threadlike blade +  and scale-like +
0 cm0 mm <br />0 m <br /> (0.4 cm4 mm <br />0.004 m <br />) +
parallel +  and divergent +
terete +, rolled +  and plicate +
purple +  and red +
round +  and trigonous +
North America +, Eurasia +  and and nw Africa +
open +, pistillate +  and staminate +
hypogynous +  and subtending +
biconvex +  and trigonous +
septate-nodulose +
prophyllate +, subsessile +  and short-pedunculate +
multi-ranked +, 2-ranked +, 3-ranked +  and alternate +
basal +  and cauline +
bidentate +  and entire +
with (1-)3-6(-30) bristles and/or scales +
veined +  and veinless +
ascending +  and spreading +
2-3(-4)-carpellate +
3 (?) +  and 1 (?) +
in J. M. Coulter, Man. Bot. Rocky Mt., +
adventitious +
redbrown +  and white-hyaline +
basal +  and proximal +
2-keeled +
septate-nodulose +
1 +  and 3 +
septate +, hollow +  and solid +
compressed +, terete +  and trigonous +
papillate +
deciduous +
2-3(-4)-fid +
Carex sect. Lamprochlaenae +
section +
plant +  and cespitose +
0.1 cm1 mm <br />0.001 m <br /> (0.2 cm2 mm <br />0.002 m <br />) +