Flora of North America species comparison

1, fleshy, erect, openly branched in distal 1/2, glabrous;

branches on distal stems several, ascending.

single, erect, villous with septate trichomes, sometimes ± glabrate, sometimes distally thinly tomentose;

branches few–many, ascending.

blades oblong, 10–50 × 6–12 cm, margins usually not strongly undulate, coarsely dentate or shallowly to deeply pinnatifid with 10–15 pairs of lobes, teeth or lobes ± closely spaced, not much overlapping, narrowly to broadly triangular, spiny-dentate or larger shallowly 3–5-lobed, main spines 2–12 mm, abaxial faces glabrous, adaxial glabrous;

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

principal cauline many, well distributed, proximally ± winged-petiolate, distally sessile, gradually reduced, less divided, bases auriculate-claping and/or decurrent as spiny wings to 2 cm;

distal much reduced.

blades oblanceolate to elliptic or ovate, 10–40 × 1–13 cm, margins flat, finely spiny-toothed and otherwise undivided to coarsely toothed or shallowly pinnatifid, lobes broadly triangular, main spines 1–5 mm, abaxial faces white-tomentose, adaxial faces green, glabrate to villous with septate trichomes;

basal usually absent at flowering, winged-petiolate, bases tapered;

principal cauline well distributed, gradually reduced, bases narrowed, sometimes weakly clasping;

distal cauline well developed.

0–2 cm Involucres green, ovoid to campanulate (not including spreading phyllary apices), 2.5–4 × 2.5–3.5 cm, appearing glabrous.

0–5 cm (leafy-bracted).

ovoid to broadly cylindric or campanulate, (2–)2.5–3.5(–4) × (1.5–)2–3(–4) cm, thinly arachnoid.

tips 4–6 mm.

lavender-pink, 20–26 mm, tubes 5–8.5 mm, throats 5.2–8 mm, lobes linear, 9–10 mm;

style tips 3.5–4.2 mm, conspicuously exserted beyond corolla lobes.

pink to purple (white), 20–35 mm, tubes 10–16 mm, throats 5–12 mm, lobes 5–9 mm.

in 5–7 series, unequal, outer longer than inner, bases short-appressed, abaxial faces without glutinous ridge, minutely scabridulous, apices green, thick, spreading to curved-ascending, proximally flattened, linear, spines stout, 5–12 mm;

outer entire or pinnately spiny, inner entire, scabridulous-ciliolate;

apices of inner flexuous, sometimes slightly expanded and minutely erose.

in 10–20 series, strongly imbricate, greenish with subapical darker central zone, ovate (outer) to lanceolate (inner), abaxial faces with a narrow glutinous ridge (milky when fresh, dark when dry), outer and middle entire, bodies appressed, spines slender, abruptly spreading, 3–4 mm;

apices of inner phyllaries spreading, narrow, flattened, entire, spines spreading, slender, 3–4 mm;

apices of inner phyllaries spreading, narrow, flattened, ± dilated, ± erose or finely serrulate.

several–many, erect or nodding, usually sessile or short-pedunculate, crowded in subcaptitate or short, spiciform clusters at branch tips, collectively forming open, paniculiform arrays.

1–many, in corymbiform or paniculiform arrays, (± elevated above principal cauline leaves), not subtended by ring of spiny bracts.

dark brown, 4.5–5 mm, apical collars not differeniated;

pappi ca. 20 mm.

tan to dark brown, 4–5.5 mm, apical collars stramineous, 0.5–1 mm;

pappi 12–24 mm.

= 18.