CAREX sect. LAMPROCHLAENAE in Flora of China @ efloras.org

14. CAREX sect. LAMPROCHLAENAE Drejer, Symb. Caric. 10. 1844.

黄囊薹草组 huang nang tai cao zu

Rhizome creeping. Culms tufted, slightly slender, clothed with red-brown, bladeless sheaths. Leaves usually rather narrow. Involucral bracts scalelike or lowermost one leaflike, linear, rarely setiform, nearly not sheathed or very shortly sheathed. Spikes 2-5; terminal spike male, rare species with 2 male spikes, linear-lanceolate, lanceolate, or clavate; lateral spikes female, ovate, broadly ovate, or subglobose, subdensely flowered, sessile or rarely shortly pedunculate. Female glumes red-brown or yellow-brown, margins broadly hyaline. Utricles obliquely patent or eventually divaricate, obovate or elliptic-obovate, obtusely or inflated trigonous, glabrous, rarely hispid, shiny, shortly beaked, orifice obliquely truncate, emarginate, or shortly 2-toothed. Nutlets tightly enveloped; style base slightly thickened; stigmas 3.

Twelve species: circumboreal in Asia, Europe, and North America, also in N Africa; seven species (five endemic) in China.

1 Culms 2-8 cm tall; utricles 2-3 mm (2)

+ Culms 10-35 cm tall (C. aridula only 5-20 cm tall); utricles 3-4 mm (3)

2 (1) Spikes 2 or 3, female spikes congregated at top of culm; involucral bracts scalelike, aristate at apex, not sheathed; utricles shorter than glume, 2-2.2 mm. 71 C. pseudosupina

+ Spikes 3 or 4, female spikes congregated at base of culm, lower than leaves; involucral bracts setaceous, shortly sheathed; utricles equaling or longer than glume, 2.5-3 mm. 72 C. tangulashanensis

3 (1) Lowermost involucral bract leaflike, upper involucral bracts scalelike or setiform, shortly sheathed; female spikes (0.5-)0.8-1.5 cm, shortly pedunculate or lowermost female spike rather long sheathed (4)

+ Involucral bracts scalelike, lowermost one long awned, not sheathed; female spikes 0.5-0.8(-1) cm, sessile (5)

4 (3) Spikes 3-5, lowermost spike slightly remote, upper spikes congregated at top of culm, terminal spikes 1 or 2 male, female spikes 2-4, 1-1.5 cm, densely flowered, shortly pedunculate; utricles smooth, glabrous. 76 C. turkestanica

+ Spikes 2 or 3, congregated at top of culm, terminal spike male, female spikes 1 or 2, (0.5-)0.8-1.2 cm, rather loosely flowered, lowermost spike long pedunculate, others shortly pedunculate; utricles hispid. 77 C. asperifructus

5 (3) Female spikes congregated at top of culm; utricles dark brown at maturity. 73 C. ivanoviae

+ Lowermost female spikes rather remote; utricles yellow or yellowish green at maturity (6)

6 (5) Utricles elliptic or obovate, inflated trigonous, 3-4 mm, yellow. 74 C. korshinskii

+ Utricles globose-obovate, obtusely trigonous, ca. 3 mm, yellowish green. 75 C. aridula

Lower Taxa