Sedge Buster Part 2 Cyperus Lesson Ultimate and Most Distal 12

Rayetta. I miss my bosom companion and yer brother, Ray. That high-fallutin’ Ray now spends all his time on the laps of giants er smooching with strumpets and has nought time fer me and sedge buster. It aint fair.

Crumby! Olwen is not a strumpet.

She aint?

No. Olwen is not a strumpet. She is an important Goddess. Now stop your whining and I, the LDR shall help you with sedge buster.

Gee whiz. Thank ye Rayetta. Oh lookee here. It’s Hope Remains, also arrived to hep me with sedge buster, maybe.

Goodness gracious no, Crumby, and move over for the nonce. I must report sad findings regarding my baby bracted twist flower (btf) charges.

Yikes!

Yes, yikes indeed Crumby. For we have but two alas, as all the other presumptive ones we had potentially identified in their baby cotyledon stages have metamorphosed into other and alternative little plants. Moreover, the invisible herbivores that devour the two we do have remain, invisible.

So Hope, I reckon you got the better of yerself.

What dost thou mean, Crumby?

Er, that you were too hopeful.

Shame on you Crumby, to spell such a thing. There’s always plenty of Hope. But, having made my sad report, I shall now depart, for Ray shall require his morning inspiration. Bye.

See Rayetta! Ray gets all the attention.

Hmmm. Never mind, Crumby. Cheer up and we shall load up. Oh look. Today we have the ultimate Cyperus lesson for the nonce, Cyperus surinamensis. Did you find this one in Surinam, Crumby?

Stop teasing me Rayetta. I aint in the mood fer yer teasing.

Hmmm. Well, alrighty then. But perhaps we should take time out to remember the little black pot, and also the little black kettle, and the taking of one’s own medicine and the obscurely related birds of a feather that stick together.

Er. Er. Er. All righty then. I have learned my lesson.

Good! Now shall we make progress.

Okie dokie. Ha! No I have never been to Surinam. I found this one at Pace Bend because Cyperus surinamensis rarely is found in these parts but is mostly only found on the Texas coast near these parts and in South America. This one is one of the rare finds in these parts.

That’s better. Now I see Crumby that you have a picture with a spell on it, retrose bristles.

Yepper.

Would you like to spell some more on the subtopic, retrose bristles, or shall I?

Take it away, Rayetta.

Ahem. Retrose bristles on a sedge make the stem of the sedge, upon which the retrose bristles reside, bumpy or scratchy to the touch. As you may see, the retrose bristles point downwards on the stem towards the ground. Antrose bristles, which also make the stem feel bumpy and scratchy, point up along the stem, skyward.

Most excellent Rayetta.

Why thank you Crumby. Shall I continue making progress on the second picture.

By all means, take it away, LDR.

All righty then. Crumby has uploaded in the general vicinity a picture of a great many spikelets of Cyperus surinamensis. In my experience, there are always a great many spikelets on a Cyperus surinamensis, bunched together, as if they very happy to be crowded and rubbing their little elbows and lalaholes together. In the middle of the picture, Crumby has helpfully labeled a dissected out achene. But north of the achene is something interesting. See how the spikelets mature. The lowest florets on the spikelets mature first and then up the spikelet they go, maturing away, until the very ultimate, and distal ones mature last of all.

Lalaholes!

Yes Crumby. Lalaholes. If you can spell lalaholes, so can I.