阔鳞嵩草 kuo lin song cao

Rhizomes short. Basal sheaths prominent and persistent, inner ones straw-colored, outer ones chocolate brown with darker margins, slightly shiny, not fibrillose, retaining dried leaf blades. Culms densely tufted, erect and rigid, subterete, 24-28 cm tall, ca. 1 mm in diam. Leaves basal, slightly longer than culms; blade filiform, semicircular or V-shaped in transverse section, ca. 1.5 mm wide, midrib not distinct abaxially. Inflorescence spicate, narrowly cylindric, unisexual, male and female spikes borne on same plant. Male inflorescence ca. 4 × 0.3 cm; male glumes oblong-oblanceolate, ca. 8 × 2.5 mm, margin narrowly hyaline, apex rounded. Female inflorescence dense, lower spikelets sometimes distant, brown, ca. 6 × 0.6 cm; lowest involucral bract glumelike, apex aristate, arista ca. 5 mm; female glumes brown laterally, with green midvein, oblong-ovate, 6.2-8 × 2.5-3.9 mm, midvein broad, margin very narrowly hyaline or not hyaline, apex obtuse. Prophylls lower part pale brown, apex brown, linear-oblong, 7-10 × 1-1.5 mm, papery, 2-keeled, keels minutely scabrid, margins free to base, overlapping. Nutlets linear, obscurely trigonous, body ca. 2.5 × 0.7 mm, with stipe ca. 1 mm, beaked with stout style base (ca. 1.5 mm). Stigmas 3. Fl. and fr. May-Sep.

Grasslands, alpine meadows; 3300-4800 m. S Xizang (Yadong) [Bhutan].