Flora of North America species comparison

slender, unbranched or branched, 10–20 cm.

ascending to erect, usually branched.

primarily cauline;

petiole 0.3–1.8 cm;

blade unlobed, narrowly ovate to elliptic, 0.3–2 × 0.3–1 cm, margins entire or inconspicuously denticulate, brownish oil cells lining veins abaxially.

basal and cauline, cauline often reduced, basal often forming well-developed rosette, alternate;

stipules absent; long-petiolate;

blade often pinnately (rarely bipinnately) lobed, sometimes unlobed, or lateral lobes greatly reduced or absent, terminal lobe usually large, margins usually regularly or irregularly dentate to serrate, sometimes denticulate, serrulate, or entire, abaxial surface or margin with ± conspicuous, usually brown, oil cells.

erect, elongating in fruit.

racemes, erect or nodding.

opening at sunrise;

buds without free tips;

floral tube 0.4–0.5 mm, glabrous inside;

sepals 1–1.2 mm;

petals yellow, fading pale lavender, 1–1.5 mm;

stamens 4 (or 8), antisepalous, filaments 0.5 mm, anthers 0.5–0.7 mm, glabrous, when 8, then antipetalous ones smaller and abortive;

style 1.5 mm, stigma surrounded by anthers at anthesis.

bisexual, actinomorphic, buds usually erect, sometimes reflexed;

floral tube deciduous (with sepals, petals, and stamens after anthesis), with basal nectary;

sepals 4, reflexed singly;

petals 4, usually yellow or white, often fading orange-red, sometimes lavender or purple, rarely cream, often with 1+ red dots near base;

stamens usually 8, in 2 subequal series, rarely 4 in 1 series (usually in C. exilis), anthers versatile, pollen shed singly or in tetrads;

ovary 4-locular, stigma usually entire and capitate, rarely conical-peltate and ± 4-lobed, surface unknown, probably wet and non-papillate.

a capsule, straight or slightly curved, subterete and clavate or oblong-cylindrical, regularly loculicidal;

pedicellate.

spreading or reflexed, clavate, 4–10 mm;

pedicel 3–9 mm.

0.8 mm.

numerous, in 2 rows per locule, lenticular to narrowly ovoid to narrowly obovoid, finely pitted, with ± pronounced membranous margin when immature.

= 14.