Stem 0.5-1.5(-3) cm, simple or with few short branches, greenish-brown; lvs semiorbicular, 1 mm wide; fls freely produced, resembling short lateral branches until expanded; fr 2 mm, on a pedicel about equaling the subtending lf. Nf. and Que. to Minn. and Sask., s. to n. N.J., Pa., and Mich., chiefly on black spruce, less often on white spruce, occasionally on other conifers. Apr., May.

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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