Flora of North America species comparison

usually 1, erect, subglabrous to puberulent and/or tomentose;

branches 0–several, stiffly ascending.

usually 1, erect, less commonly several, ascending, simple to sparingly short-branched in distal 1/2, less commonly openly branched, villous with jointed trichomes;

branches on distal stems 0–many, short, ascending.

blades ± elliptic, 8–35 × 4–8 cm, divided about halfway to midveins, lobes spreading, triangular, coarsely dentate or with a few broad lobes, obtuse to acute, main spines 1–5 mm, abaxial faces green or gray, thinly tomentose, adaxial green and glabrous to sparingly pilose;

basal often present at flowering, spiny winged-petiolate;

main cauline reduced distally, bases clasping;

distal much reduced, linear-oblong, usually less deeply lobed and often spinier than proximal.

blades linear to oblong or elliptic, 10–30+ × 1–10 cm, margins flat to undulate, subentire to coarsely dentate or shallowly to deeply pinnatifid, lobes lance-oblong to broadly triangular, spinulose to spiny-dentate or shallowly lobed, main spines 3–12 mm, abaxial faces green and subglabrous to gray- or white-tomentose with felted arachnoid trichomes, ± villous to tomentose along major veins with septate trichomes, rarely glabrous or glabrate, adaxial ± green, glabrous or villous with septate trichomes;

basal often present at flowering, spiny winged-petiolate or sessile;

principal cauline well distributed, proximally winged-petiolate, distally sessile, gradually reduced, bases sometimes short-decurrent (0–2 cm);

distal ± reduced, often narrower than the proximal, sometimes with non-pigmented bases.

0–20 cm.

0–15+ cm.

broadly cylindric to narrowly campanulate, 3–5 × 2–4 cm, loosely arachnoid or ± glabrous, finely short-ciliate.

(green), broadly ovoid, 1.5–2.5 × 1.5–2.5 cm, loosely villous with septate trichomes, sparingly if at all arachnoid.

red to reddish purple, 30–45 mm, tubes 10–20 mm, throats 10–16 mm, lobes 9–11 mm;

style tips 3.5–5 mm.

white, ochroleucous, 19–23 mm, tubes 6.5–8.5 mm, throats 7.5–11 mm, lobes 4–5 mm;

style tips 4–5.5 mm, conspicuously exserted.

in 6–8 series, imbricate, outer green, inner purple to red, linear-lanceolate (outer) to linear (inner), abaxial faces without glutinous ridge;

outer and mid bodies short, appressed, entire or spinulose-ciliate, apices long-spreading to ascending, entire or spinulose-ciliate or rarely with expanded, fringed appendages, spines straight, weak, 1–3 mm;

apices of inner red to purple, straight or rarely twisted, long, flat, entire.

in 4–8 series, subequal, ± lanceolate, bases appressed, apices ascending, linear to broadly expanded, erose to lacerate or spiny-fringed, spines straight, slender, 2–3 mm, abaxial faces with or without narrow glutinous ridge;

apices of inner flexuous, sometimes expanded and erose.

1–6, borne singly or in corymbiform, racemiform, or spiciform arrays.

several–many, erect, usually in racemiform or spiciform arrays, usually closely subtended by clustered ± leafy bracts.

brown, 6–7 mm, apical collars narrow;

pappi 25–40 mm.

brown, 5.5–6.5 mm, apical collars not differentiated;

pappi 17–20 mm.

= 32, 64.

= 34.