Flora of North America species comparison

single, erect, villous to tomentose with jointed trichomes, distally tomentose with fine, unbranched trichomes;

branches 0–few, ascending, (short).

erect, stout, fleshy, leafy, simple or distally branched, villous or tomentose with long, septate trichomes;

branches usually short, stout, ascending.

blades narrowly elliptic to oblanceolate, 15–30+ × 3–10 cm, margins shallowly to very deeply pinnatifid, narrow lobes separated by broad sinuses, spiny-dentate to lobed, main spines 2–6 mm, abaxial villous to tomentose with jointed trichomes, sometimes also thinly tomentose with fine unbranched trichomes, adaxial faces villous with septate trichomes or glabrate;

basal often present at flowering, petioles spiny-winged, bases tapered;

cauline many, sessile, gradually reduced and becoming widely spaced above, bases long-decurrent with prominently spiny wings;

distal cauline deeply pinnatifid with few-toothed spine-tipped lobes.

blades oblong-elliptic to oblanceolate, 15–30+ × 3–7 cm, usually shallowly to deeply pinnatifid, lobes ovate to broadly triangular, spreading, usually separated by broad U-shaped sinuses, spinose-dentate or coarsely lobed, main spines 2–5(–8) mm, slender, abaxial faces villous with septate trichomes, at least along veins, sometimes thinly arachnoid, adaxial villous with septate trichomes;

basal often present at flowering, spiny winged-petiolate;

principal cauline winged-petiolate or sessile, not much reduced distally;

distal reduced, similar to proximal, crowded around heads.

0–1 cm.

0–5(–10) cm, leafy-bracted.

ovoid to campanulate, 1–1.5 × 0.8–1.3 cm, thinly cobwebby tomentose with fine unbranched trichomes.

broadly ovoid to hemispheric, 3.5–5 × 3.5–5 cm (appearing much wider and ± campanulate in pressed specimens), loosely arachnoid on phyllary margins or glabrate.

lavender to purple (white), 11–13 mm, tubes 5–7 mm, throats 2–3 mm, lobes 3–4.5 mm;

style tips 1.5–2 mm.

purple (white), 30–48 mm, tubes 17–30 mm, throats 6.5–11 mm, lobes 5–7 mm;

style tips 5–7 mm.

in 5–7 series, strongly imbricate, greenish, or with purplish tinge, lanceolate to ovate (outer) or linear-lanceolate (inner), margins thinly arachnoid-ciliate, abaxial faces with narrow glutinous ridge, outer and middle appressed, entire, apices acute, mucronate or spines erect or spreading, weak, 0.3–1 mm;

apices of inner phyllaries purplish, linear-attenuate, scarious, flat.

in 4–6 series, strongly imbricate, ovate or broadly lanceolate (outer) to lance-linear (inner), abaxial faces with ± narrow glutinous ridge;

outer and mid appressed, spines erect to ascending, 2–3 mm;

apices of mid and inner narrowed and scabrid-denticulate, innermost spineless, with expanded, flexuous, erose-denticulate tips.

few–many in dense clusters at branch tips.

1–5(–9), borne singly or crowded in corymbiform arrays at tips of main stems, often closely subtended and overtopped by 1–several distal leaves.

tan to stramineous, 2.5–3.5 mm, apical collars 0.1–0.2 mm, shiny;

pappi 9–11 mm.

stramineous to light brown, 3.5–5.5 mm, apical collar yellow, narrow;

pappi 30–42 mm.

= 34.