Flora of North America species comparison

erect, simple or with lateral branches (especially distally), 0.2–1 m. Leaves: petiole 1/2–11/2 as long as blade;

blade rhombic-ovate or ovate, 1–7 × 0.5–5 cm, base rounded, cuneate, or attenuate, margins entire, plane, apex obtuse, rounded, or emarginate, mucronate.

erect or ascending, branched, 0.1–0.5 m. Leaves: petiole 1/2 as long as blade;

blade oblong-lanceolate to lanceolate-linear, 1–3 × 0.2–1 cm, base cuneate to narrowly cuneate, margins entire, plane or sometimes undulate, apex rounded or obtuse-truncate, mucronate.

of pistillate flowers ovate to lanceolate, 1 mm, shorter than tepals.

broadly ovate, 1 mm or shorter, 1/2 or less length of tepals, apex acute.

slender spikes aggregated into elongate terminal panicles, also from distal axils, green, leafless at least distally.

mostly axillary, but at apex flowers also condensed in terminal spikes or spicate panicles, usually leafy proximally or nearly leafless distally.

inconspicuous, mostly at tips of inflorescences;

tepals 3;

stamens 3.

tepals (3–)5;

stamens 3.

tepals 3, narrowly elliptic, obovate-elliptic or spatulate, not clawed, ± equal, 1.2–1.7 mm, apex rounded or nearly acute, mucronate or not;

style branches erect;

stigmas 3.

tepals 5, spreading at maturity, spatulate, clawed, subequal, 2 mm, margins fimbriate, apex rounded or shallowly emarginate;

stigmas 3.

black or dark brown, subglobose to thick-lenticular, 1 mm diam., minutely punctulate, rather dull.

dark reddish brown to nearly black, lenticular or broadly lenticular, 0.6–0.8 mm diam., smooth.

ovoid to compressed-ovoid, 1–1.6 mm, equaling or slightly exceeding tepals, prominently or faintly rugose, indehiscent.

narrowly oblong, 1–1.4 mm, shorter than tepals, indehiscent.