Culms densely tufted, central or lateral, ascending or slightly decumbent, 45–62 cm × 0.5–1 mm. Leaves: basal sheaths tan or light brown; sheaths green, sometimes glaucous, 4–88 mm; blades green, sometimes glaucous, midrib and 2 lateral veins developed, flat or slightly corrugate, 30–46 cm × 3–14 mm, blades of overwintering leaves smooth or, rarely, sparsely papillose abaxially. Inflorescences: peduncles of proximal spikes 0–5 cm, arising from proximal 1/3 of culms, 1.4–3.3(–5.3) times as long as spikes they subtend; of terminal spikes 0.4–12 cm. Bracts 0.6–14 cm × 0.8–6 mm, bract blades of distal lateral spikes linear, narrower than spikes, widest bract blade of distalmost lateral spike 0.5–3.4 mm wide. Spikes 3(–4) per culm; lateral spikes 22–62 × 3–5 mm; distal lateral spikes separate; terminal spike linear to linear-clavate, 22–32(–36) × 2–3 mm. Pistillate scales 3.4–5 × 1.2–2.2 mm, apex aristate, apiculate, or acute. Staminate scales oblong-ovate, 3–5 × 1.2–2 mm, margins hyaline or, occasionally, light brown, apex obtuse or acute. Anthers 3–3.2 mm. Perigynia 6–18 per spike, scattered to loosely overlapping, ratio of longer lateral spike length to perigynia number 1.9–3.4, ascending, finely, conspicuously (22–)25–32-veined, elongate, (3.4–)3.9–5.1 × 1.2–2 mm; beak straight or slightly curved, 0.6–1.7 mm. Achenes elongate-obovoid, 2.2–2.8(–4.6) × 1–1.8 mm. 2n = 36, 40.

Fruiting spring. Dry to moist ravine slopes, deciduous or mixed deciduous-evergreen forests; 0–600 m; Ala., Ark., Conn., Del., D.C., Fla., Ga., Ky., La., Md., Miss., N.J., N.Y., N.C., Pa., S.C., Tenn., Tex., Va., W.Va.