Brown Galingale

A native of temperate Eurasia, Cyperus fuscus is intermittently adventive and locally established 35°–45° N latitude. The report from New York (M. L. Fernald 1950) is based on a misidentification of C. diandrus (R. S. Mitchell and G. C. Tucker 1997).

Herbs, annual, cespitose. Culms trigonous, 2–30 cm × 0.6–1.1 mm, glabrous. Leaves flat, 4–10 cm × 2–4 mm. Inflorescences: rays 1–3, 0.2–1.5 cm; 2d order rays present in robust plants, to 5 mm; bracts 2–3, longest erect, others spreading, 1–20 cm × 1.5–3 mm. Spikelets 3–12, narrowly ellipsoid, flattened, 3–7 × 0.9–1.2 mm; floral scales 8–12(–16), laterally purplish brown, medially greenish yellow, 3-ribbed medially, orbiculate, 0.9–1.1 × 1 mm, apex mucronate. Flowers: stamen 1; anthers ellipsoid, 0.2 mm, connective not prolonged; styles 0.3–0.4 mm; stigmas 0.3 mm. Achenes light brown, ellipsoid, 0.7–0.9 × 0.4 mm, base barely stipelike to narrowly cuneate, apex acute, surfaces glabrous.

Annual, 10-30 cm, forming small tufts. Stem 1-1.5 mm diam., trigonous, smooth. Leaves basal, shorter than stem; sheaths 20-40 mm, brown or reddish brown, mouth margin concave; ligule c. 0.7 mm, scarious, brown, arch of attachment as high as wide or higher; blades 2-3 mm wide, flat or keeled, margins smooth, apex long, trigonous, acute, scabrous. Inflorescence an irregular, spreading multiple spike, primary branches often up to 30 mm, with tubular prophyll, ending into cluster of to c. 50 spikes; lowest 2-3 bracts foliose, 3-10 (20) cm, sheath-less, margins and midnerve below scabrous, base with scarious margins. Spikes 3-15 x 1.5-2 mm, compressed, tight, with 10-40 glumes; rachis laterally compressed or quadrangular, brown or, usually, dark reddish brown, shiny, almost straight, internodes c. 0.5 mm; glumes 1-1.3 mm, cymbiform, mucronate, sides wide, scarious, usually dark reddish brown, basal margins protruding, scarious. Stamens 2; stigmas 3, sometimes 2. Nut c. 0.8 mm, ellipsoid, trigonous or convex, lateral angles sharp, yellow-brown, very finely reticulate.

introduced; Ont., Que.; Calif., Conn., Md., Mass., Mo., Nebr., Nev., N.J., Pa., S.Dak., Va.; Eurasia.

Distribution: From C and S Europe and N Africa to China, N Vietnam and Laos; Iraq, Turkey, Caucasus, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tadjikistan, Pakistan, India.

Fl. Per.: (April-) June - August.

Fruiting summer.

Damp, disturbed soils, emergent shorelines, puddles; 0–1700m.

By rivers, stream and canal margins, flooded areas, moist fields; 5000-8000 ft.