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• Scleria verticillata

Scleria verticillata — low nutsedge

Facts

Low nutsedge is an annual nutsedge, with a range covering the eastern half of the United States, although it does not extend into New England, except for a single record in Connecticut, where it was collected in a grassy marsh over high-pH bedrock.

Habitat

Marshes, swamps

Characteristics

• Flowers

  Anther length

  2–4 mm

  Floral bristle color

  NA

  Floral bristle number

  0

  Floral bristle relative length

  NA

  Floral bristles

  NA

  Floral scale hairs

  there are no hairs on the floral scales

  Floral scale shape

  • the floral scales are lanceolate (widest below the middle, and tapering at both ends)
  • the floral scales are oblong (rectangular but with rounded ends)

  Floral scale translucent

  the floral scales are opaque

  Inflorescence bract angle

  the bracts are vertical or angled only slightly outwards

  Inflorescence bract number

  there are two to five bracts per inflorescence

  Inflorescence bract position (Sparganium)

  NA

  Inflorescence bracts

  there are at least two bracts, and they are either flat or folded or rolled in at the edges

  Inflorescence branching

  the inflorescence is on one or more stems with no branches

  Inflorescence crowding

  the inflorescence is crowded together in one tight cluster

  Inflorescence position

  the inflorescence is at the tip of the plant

  Inflorescence shape

  the aggregations within the inflorescence are roughly circular (not flattened) in cross-section

  Inflorescence type

  there is one spike or raceme at the tip of the stem

  Perianth composition

  there is no perianth on the plant

  Stamen number

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3

  Stigma number

  • 2
  • 3

  Style division

  the top two thirds of the style is divided

  floral bristle barbs

  NA

• Fruits or seeds

  Achene surface texture

  the achene has tiny wrinkles that run cross-wise across the achene

  Achene tubercle relative width

  NA

  Achene tubercle width

  0 mm

  Capsule relative length

  NA

  Fruit cross-section

  the fruit is triangular to terete (circular) in cross-section

  Fruit length

  1–1.9 mm

  Fruit type (general)

  the fruit is like a seed, and surrounded by scales

  Fruit type (specific)

  the fruit is an achene (dry, seed-like fruit) without a tubercle (a swelling or projection, usually of a different color or texture)

  Locules in capsule

  NA

  Seed length

  0 mm

  Seed tail relative length

  0 mm

  Seed tails

  NA

  Tubercle height

  0 mm

• Growth form

  Lifespan

  the plant lives only a single year or less

  Rhizome thickness

  0 mm

  Underground organs

  there are only slender roots on the plant

• Leaves

  Auricle length

  0 mm

  Auricle texture

  NA

  Auricles

  there are no auricles on the leaf sheath

  Leaf blade cross-section

  • the leaf blade is elliptic or circular in cross-section
  • the leaf blade is flat or rolled in at the edges

  Leaf blade length

  Up to 150 mm

  Leaf blade width

  0.5–2 mm

  Leaf form

  all the leaves hold their form out of water

  Leaf position on plant

  some leaf attachment points are above the midpoint of the stem

  Leaf septa

  the leaf blades do not have transverse septa

  Leaf sheath hairs

  the leaf sheathes have hairs on them

  Pedicel length (Typha)

  0 mm

  Stem leaf blade ligules

  the plant has ligules at the leaf blade bases

  Stem leaf blades

  there are fully-developed leaves with leaf blades on the main stem

  Width of seed-producing inflorescence

  3–7 mm

• Place

  Habitat

  • aquatic
  • wetlands

  New England state

  Connecticut

  Specific habitat

  • marshes
  • swamps

• Stem, shoot, branch

  Plant height

  7–60 cm

  Stem shape in cross-section

  the stem is roughly triangular in cross-section

  Stem texture near tip

  the stem feels smooth near the tip

Wetland status

Occurs only in wetlands. (Wetland indicator code: OBL)

New England distribution and conservation status

From the dichotomous key of Flora Novae Angliae