Flora of North America species comparison

stout, erect, loosely arachnoid with fine trichomes and villous with jointed trichomes; branching unknown.

1–several, erect or ascending, densely gray-tomentose;

branches few–many, ascending to spreading.

blades elliptic to oblanceolate, 15–30+ × 6–8+ cm, divided halfway or more to midveins, lobes linear-lanceolate, rigidly spreading, entire or trifid, acuminate, main spines stout, 5–15 mm, abaxial faces tomentose with fine, non-septate trichomes, villous along major veins with septate trichomes, adaxial glabrescent or sparsely tomentose, villous along veins;

basal not observed;

cauline well distributed, distally not much reduced, sessile, bases clasping, not decurrent.

blades oblong-elliptic to obovate, 10–60 × 2–15 cm, unlobed or shallowly to deeply pinnatifid, lobes lanceolate to ovate-triangular, ascending to spreading, entire to coarsely dentate or lobed, main spines slender to stout, 2–30 mm, faces densely gray-tomentose, rarely glabrate;

basal present at flowering, petiolate;

principal cauline well distributed, proximal winged-petiolate, distal sessile, bases auriculate-clasping or decurrent as a spiny wing 1–3 cm;

distalmost well separated, bractlike.

0–1 cm.

0–4(–8) cm.

hemispheric to broadly campanulate, 3–4 × 4–5+ cm, arachnoid.

ovoid to hemispheric, 1.5–3 cm, 2–4.5 cm diam, loosely arachnoid on phyllary margins or glabrate.

white, 30–33 mm, tubes 16 mm, throats 9–12 mm, lobes 5.5–9 mm;

style tips 6 mm.

rose-purple (white or pinkish-tinged), 18–21 mm, tubes 8–9 mm, throats 5–6 mm (abruptly expanded), lobes 5–6 mm;

style tips 3–4.5 mm.

in 6–8 series, narrowly lanceolate to linear, outer subequal, rigidly spreading, spines 5–10 mm, inner ± imbricate, bodies appressed, glutinous ridge absent, apices spreading, margins spinulose or scabrid, apices of mid and inner flattened, spineless, scabrid.

in 6–8 series, imbricate, often with dark purple patch near tip, ovate-lanceolate (outer) to linear-lanceolate (inner), abaxial faces with linear to elliptic glutinous ridge;

outer and middle appressed, entire, spines spreading, 1–9 mm;

apices of inner often purple-tinged, often flexuous, flattened, spineless, scabrid.

1–5, terminal and in distal axils in spiciform arrays.

10–many, often crowded at branch tips, collectively forming paniculiform arrays.

light brown, 6 mm, collars also light brown, ca. 0.75 mm;

pappi 25–33 mm.

dark brown to black, 5–6 mm, apical collars not differentiated;

pappi 15–20 mm.