Flora of North America species comparison

usually 1, erect, finely arachnoid-tomentose, sometimes villous with septate trichomes below nodes;

branches 0–10+, slender, usually arising in distal 1/2, ascending.

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

branches on distal stems several, ascending.

blades linear-oblong to oblanceolate or elliptic, 7–30 × 1–15 cm, unlobed and spinulose to dentate or shallowly to deeply pinnatifid, lobes well separated, linear to triangular-ovate, dentate to deeply lobed, main spines 2–5 mm, slender, abaxial faces green to gray, thinly to densely arachnoid-tomentose, sometimes glabrate, sometimes villous with septate trichomes along veins, adaxial green, glabrous;

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

principal cauline mostly in proximal 1/2, winged-petiolate or sessile, bases narrowed, sometimes auriculate;

distal well separated, progressively reduced, becoming bractlike, often unlobed or less deeply divided than the proximal, sometimes spinier than proximal, bases often distally expanded and auriculate-clasping.

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.

(0–)2–15 cm.

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

ovoid to hemispheric or campanulate, 1.5–2.5 × 1.5–3.5 cm, glabrous to arachnoid-floccose.

creamy white to purple, 18–28 mm, tubes 7–12 mm, throats 5–12 mm, lobes 3.5–7 mm, style 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.

in 6–8 series, subequal to strongly imbricate, green, linear to obovate (outer) to linear (inner), abaxial faces with inconspicuous glutinous ridge;

outer and middle bases appressed, margins entire to spinulose-dentate or broad, scarious, lacerate-dentate, spines absent or ascending to spreading, 1–2 mm;

apices of inner sometimes flexuous or reflexed, narrow, flat, entire or expanded, scarious, and lacerate-dentate.

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.

few–many, borne singly or in openly branched in corymbiform, racemiform, or paniculiform arrays on main stem and branches, sometimes also in distal axils, not closely subtended by clustered leaf bracts.

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.

tan to dark brown, 4.5–5.5 mm, apical collars differentiated or not;

pappi 13–23 mm.

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

pappi ca. 20 mm.

= 32.