Carex distans L., it is a perennial or rhizomatous geophyte green herb. Stem, up to 15-100 cm erect, stiff, obtusely triquetrous, glabrous. Basal leaves shorter than the stem, 2-4 mm wide, strongly keeled, acute, scabrous at the upper parts towards the superior face and towards the margins and the keel, the rest glabrous and smooth. Inferior sheatslimbless, brown or reddish marcescent, disintegrating into fibres, superior sheats greenish, striate, glabrous and smooth with membranous tip prolonging into a ligule-like obtuse appendix, fawn-coloured at the top, elongated, longer than the ligule; ligule rounded, whitish or fawnish-coloured. Inflorescence usually 4 distant spikelets; the terminal male with glumy bract, the laterals female with leafy bracts long sheated, shorter than the inflorescence. Male spikelets cylindrical, reddish, 1.2-5 cm long. Rachis wingless erect. Male glumes oblong or obovate-oblong, reddish coloured, obtuse to acute, green keeled with one clear nerve. Stamens 3, anthers linear, yellow 2-4 mm with long apicule, slender, ± hispidate. Female spikelets oblong-cylindrical to cylindrical, 1-4 x 0.4 (-0.6) cm with many peduncled flowers, peduncles up to 3 mm long, smooth, ± exserted. Rachis wingless, erect. Female glumes large, ovate, reddish brown narrowly hyalinous towards the margins, green keeled, 3-nerved, prolonging into scabrous mucro. Utricles erect, membranous, oblong, obtusely trigonous longer than the glumes c. 4 mm long, greenish, often reddish-brown dotted, glabrous, with projecting nerves, rounded al the base, and abruptly narrowing at the apex into a broad and ± short beak, scabrous towards margins, with reddish bidentate orifice, the dents ± erect, scabrous. Ovary trigonous with one style and 3 brownish stigmas. Achene olive-brown, ovate. trigonous narrowly included. maned, smooth, c. 2.5 x 1.25 mm, obliquely apiculate at the top.
Flowering in: Mar-Jun.
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