Very slender, 2-4 dm; lvs to 3 dm, 1-2 mm wide; raceme 1-2 dm, the very slender pedicels strictly erect; tep 6, 1-1.5 mm; stamens 6; ovaries 3, ovoid, in fr- linear-clavate, 6-9 mm, at maturity parting from the axis from the base upward, remaining attached at the summit, the base very sharply pointed; axis broadly 3-winged, the wings extending between the carpels; 2n=24. Brackish marshes along the coast, and in bogs inland; circumboreal, in Amer. s. to Pa., Ind., Io., Nebr., and N.M. May-July.
Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.