斜果薹草 xie guo tai cao

Rhizome short, indurate. Culms loosely tufted, 50-65 cm, trigonous, smooth, with reddish brown bladeless sheaths at base. Leaves equal to culm, blades 0.9-1.9 cm wide, flat, with distinct veins on both surfaces, surfaces and margin smooth; sheaths 3-6 cm. Involucral bracts leaflike, ± equal to inflorescence, sheaths of lowermost equaling its blade. Spikes 4 or 5, lowest remote, upper contiguous; terminal spike male, linear-cylindric, 3-4 cm, shortly pedunculate; lateral spikes female, cylindric, 3-5 cm, many flowered. Male glumes narrowly elliptic, 4-4.5 mm, apex obtuse; female glumes reddish brown, dark green medially, narrowly obovate, 2-2.5 mm, smooth, 2-veined, apex truncate, awnless. Utricles dark brown-green, obliquely patent, obovate, obtusely trigonous, 3.5-4 mm, slightly shiny, membranous, inconspicuously 3-5-veined, base obtusely cuneate, apex abruptly contracted into a long beak, orifice emarginate. Nutlets chestnut-brown, rather tightly enveloped, obovoid, trigonous, ca. 2 mm, apex emarginate; style base slightly thickened; stigmas 3. Fl. and fr. May.

● Wet places in forests; 800-900 m. E Guangxi (Hezhou).