柔果薹草 rou guo tai cao

Rhizome stoloniferous. Culms densely tufted, 15-30 cm tall, acutely triquetrous or sometimes narrowly winged on angles, scabrous on upper angles, with few bladeless sheaths at base. Leaves longer than culm, blades 4-8 mm wide, flat, rather soft, distinctly 2-veined laterally on upper surface, sheathed, sheaths brown at base of culm. Involucral bracts longer than subtending spike, upper involucral bracts sublinear, lower involucral bracts leaflike, nearly not sheathed. Spikes 3-5, usually congregate at top of culm, distances short; terminal spike male, linear or subclavate, 1-2 cm, shortly pedunculate; lateral spikes female, oblong-cylindric, 1.5-2.5 cm, densely many flowered, very shortly pedunculate or nearly sessile. Male glumes pale, narrowly oblong, ca. 4 mm, green 1-veined, apex mucronate; female glumes brownish yellow, oblong-ovate or subovate, ca. 3 mm, membranous, 1-veined, apex acuminate, sometimes mucronate. Utricles yellow-green or stramineous, obliquely patent, eventually nearly horizontally patent, much longer than glume, oblong-ovate or lanceolate-ovate, inflated trigonous, ca. 4 mm, membranous, glabrous, obscurely veined, usually rugose, base obtusely rounded, apex attenuate into a medium-sized or rather long beak, orifice shortly 2-toothed. Nutlets rather loosely enveloped, elliptic, trigonous, ca. 2 mm, base acute or slightly obtuse, apex mucronate; style base not thickened; stigmas 3. Fl. and fr. May-Jun.

Forests, thickets, wet areas, riversides, ditch sides. Taiwan, Zhejiang [Japan, Korea].