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).

usually 1, erect, thinly arachnoid-tomentose, sparsely pilose distally with short, jointed trichomes;

branches few to many, often arising from proximal nodes, 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 to elliptic, 15–30 × 2–6 cm, often unlobed and merely spinulose or spiny-dentate, sometimes pinnatifid ca. halfway to midveins, lobes separated by broad sinuses, undivided to coarsely few-dentate, main spines slender, 2–5(–10) mm, abaxial faces ± persistently thinly gray-tomentose, adaxial green, glabrous to thinly tomentose, sometimes sparsely pilose on midveins;

basal sometimes present at flowering, sessile or short winged-petiolate;

principal cauline sessile, progressively reduced, becoming bractlike distally, mid and distal bases broadly clasping;

distal reduced to linear or lanceolate bracts.

0–1 cm.

(0–)3–20 cm.

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

hemispheric to subspheric, 1.3–2.5 × (1–)1.5–2.5 cm, glabrous to loosely floccose.

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.

lavender to reddish purple, (16–)19–22 mm, tubes 6–9 mm, throats 5–8 mm, lobes 5–7 mm, style tips 5–6 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 5–8(–10) series, strongly imbricate, green with darker green to brown subapical patch, broadly ovate or oblong (outer) to lanceolate (inner), abaxial faces with prominent to obscure glutinous ridge;

outer and middle appressed, spines or terminal appendages spreading to reflexed, bodies entire or with expanded, ± scarious, ± pectinately fringed terminal appendages, tips merely mucronate or with weak spines spreading to reflexed, 1–3 mm;

apices of inner often flexuous, flat, scarious, serrulate to expanded and pectinately fringed.

few–many in dense clusters at branch tips.

few–many, in ± openly branched corymbiform or paniculiform arrays;

not closely subtended by clustered leafy bracts.

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

pappi 9–11 mm.

dark brown, 4–5 mm, apical collars stramineous or not differently colored, very narrow;

pappi 15–17 mm.

= 34.