Carex de Crawford

Plants densely cespitose. Culms 25–60(–85) cm; vegetative culms with few leaves clustered at apex. Leaves: sheaths adaxially white-hyaline, summits U-shaped; distal ligules 1.5–6 mm; blades (2–)3–4(–5) per fertile culm, 7–22 cm × 2–4 mm. Inflorescences erect, usually dense, green, gold, or dark brown, 1.8–3 cm8–14 mm; proximal internode 2–3(–5) mm; 2d internode 1–3 mm; proximal bracts bristlelike, shorter than or equaling inflorescences. Spikes 6–14, distant, distinct, ovoid to broadly ovoid, 8–10 × 4.5–6.5 mm, base and apex acute to truncate. Pistillate scales gold to dark brown, with whitish, green, or brown midstripe, lanceolate, 3–3.8 mm, shorter and narrower than perigynia, apex acuminate to short-awned. Perigynia ascending, white to gold or light brown, 0–5-veined abaxially, 0–4-veined adaxially, narrowly lanceolate to narrowly ovate, flat except over achene or, occasionally, plano-convex, 3.4–4.1(–4.7) × 0.9–1.3 mm, 0.15–0.35 mm thick, margin flat, including wing 0.1–0.2 mm wide, usually crinkled distally; beak brown or red-brown at tip, flat, ± ciliate-serrulate, abaxial suture inconspicuous, distance from beak tip to achene (1.8–)2.1–3 mm. Achenes ± elliptic, 1.1–1.5 × 0.6–0.8 mm, 0.15–0.35 mm thick; style usually persistent, sinuate. 2n = 52, ca. 66, 70.

Fruiting late spring–summer. Often in standing water, moist to wet places, open, sandy, dryish disturbed areas; 100–1500 m; Alta., B.C., Man., N.B., Nfld. and Labr., N.W.T., N.S., Ont., P.E.I., Que., Sask., Yukon; Alaska, Conn., Idaho, Maine, Mass., Mich., Minn., Mo., Mont., N.H., N.J., N.Y., Oreg., Pa., Vt., Wash., Wis.