Flora of North America species comparison

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

branches 0–several, stiffly ascending.

1, erect, puberulent to pilose with jointed trichomes, sometimes also thinly arachnoid;

branches 0–many, ascending, often nodding at tips.

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 oblong to lanceolate or oblanceolate, 10–30 × 2–5 cm, margins flat to undulate, spinulose and otherwise entire to coarsely dentate or shallowly to deeply pinnatifid, lobes well separated, spinulose to coarsely few-dentate, main spines slender to stout, 1–15 mm, one or both faces thinly pilose, sometimes thinly arachnoid, green and ± glabrescent at maturity;

basal usually absent at flowering, sessile or winged-petiolate;

principal cauline well distributed, proximal absent at flowering, moderately reduced distally, winged-petiolate or sessile (proximal), sessile and auriculate-clasping to slightly decurrent 0–2 cm;

distal well developed, spreading, lobed or unlobed.

0–20 cm.

0–4 cm.

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

hemispheric to subspheric, 1.5–2.5 × 1.5–3 cm, glabrous to finely arachnoid and/or pilose, often long pilose-ciliate with arachnoid trichomes connecting adjacent phyllaries.

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.

ochroleucous to ± yellow (rarely white or purple), 11–17 mm, tubes 5.5–11 mm, throats 2–4 mm, lobes 3–5 mm;

style tips 2–4 mm.

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 5–8 series, imbricate to subequal, proximally greenish, distally darker, becoming brownish, linear to narrowly lanceolate, outer often nearly as long as inner, abaxial faces with poorly developed glutinous ridge;

outer and mid bases appressed, apices loosely ascending to spreading, bodies entire to spiny-ciliate or terminal appendages expanded, ± scarious, pectinately fringed, spines straight, 2–6 mm;

apices of inner flat or spine-tipped, sometimes expanded and fimbriate.

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

1–many, ± erect, loosely to densely clustered at tip of main stem and branches in subcapitate to racemiform arrays, often also in distal leaf axils, closely subtended by clusters of unlobed to deeply dissected, often very spiny bracts.

brown, 6–7 mm, apical collars narrow;

pappi 25–40 mm.

tan to dark brown, 4–6 mm, apical collars narrow, not differently colored;

pappi 9–15 mm.

= 32, 64.

= 34.