Herbs, short-lived perennial, cespitose, 1.5--7 dm. Culms 1--30. Leaves basal, (1--)2--3; auricles 0.2--0.4(--0.6) mm, scarious; blade flat, 10--30 cm x 0.5--1 mm, margins entire. Inflorescences 5--15(--30)-flowered, usually somewhat loose, 1--5 cm; primary bract usually shorter than inflorescence. Flowers: chiefly along inner side of branches; bracteoles 2; tepals greenish, lanceolate, 3.3--4.4 mm; outer and inner series equal, apex acuminate; stamens 6, filaments 0.5--0.9 mm, anthers 0.4--0.8 mm; style 0.1--0.2 mm. Capsules tan or light brown, 3-locular, ellipsoid, (3.3--)3.8--4.7 mm, nearly equal to tepals. Seeds tan, ellipsoid to lunate, 0.5--0.6(--0.7) mm, not tailed. 2n = ca. 80.

Flowering and fruiting spring. Exposed sites, usually with well-drained sandy soil, often associated with shallow bedrock; N.S., Ont.; Ala., Ark., Conn., Del., Ga., Ill., Ind., Ky., La., Maine, Md., Mass., Mo., N.H., N.J., N.Y., N.C., Ohio, Okla., Pa., R.I., Tenn., Vt., Va., W.Va.