94.
Carex
echinata
Murray, Prodr. Stirp. Goett. 76. 1770.
Culms 10—90(—135) cm. Leaves 3—6 per culm; sheaths tight, inner band hyaline, 1.8—2.5 cm, apex concave, glabrous; ligules 0.6—2.5(—4.5) mm, rounded to ± acute; blades plicate, 5—40 cm × 0.7—3.3(—3.8) mm, widest leaf 1—3.3(—3.8) mm wide. Inflorescences 0.7—7.8 cm; spikes (2—)3—8; lateral spikes pistillate often with few staminate flowers proximally, 3—15.5 mm, sessile, staminate portion 7-flowered, to 8.2 mm, pistillate portion 3—32-flowered, 2.5—11 mm; basal 2 spikes 1.7—42 mm apart; terminal spike gynecandrous, 5—24 mm, staminate portion 2—17-flowered, 2—16.5 × 0.9—2 mm, pistillate portion 4—26-flowered, 2.6—9 × 4.9—9.1 mm. Pistillate scales ovate, (1.4—)2.1—3.1 × 0.7—2.3 mm, apex acute to sometimes obtuse. Staminate scales ovate-lanceolate to ovate, 1.3—3.8 × 0.8—1.7 mm, base clavate, apex acute. Anthers 0.8—1.6(—2) mm. Perigynia spreading to reflexed, castaneous to dark brown, 2—14-veined abaxially, 0—12-veined adaxially over achene, lanceolate to ovate, (2.65—)2.9—4.75 × 0.8—2.1 mm, (1.7—)1.8—3.2(—3.6) times as long as wide; beak (0.85—)0.95—2 mm, (0.4—)0.45—0.86 length of body, serrulate, teeth (0—)0.15—0.5 mm. Achenes ovate-lanceolate to rhombic-ovate, 1.3—2.1 × 0.8—1.55 mm. 2n = 58.
Subspecies 3 (2 in the flora): North America, Mexico, Central America, Eurasia.
