Stems clustered on a rather short, freely rooting rhizome, 1-4 dm, sharply triquetrous, antrorsely scaberulous on the angles, bearing several ±reduced scale-lvs at the base and 1 or 2 more normal lvs a little higher, these with narrow blade 5-12 mm; spikelet 1, terminal, brown, 5-7 mm, mostly 10-20-fld, the invol represented only by 2 or 3 empty scales at the base (these often deciduous as the spikelet approaches full maturity), the lowest scale with a strong midrib prolonged into a blunt mucro 0.5-2 mm; scales lance-ovate, blunt; bristles 6, white, flattened, crisped, elongate and much surpassing the scales, at maturity forming a silky-white tuft extending 1-2 cm beyond the end of the spikelet; anthers 0.6-1.1 mm; achene trigonous, brown, narrowly obovoid, 1-5 mm, apiculate; 2n=58. Bogs; circumboreal, extending s. to Conn., N.Y., Mich., Minn., and B.C. Fr June-Aug. (Eriophorum alpinum; Trichophorum alpinum) Transitional to Eriophorum.

Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.

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