Flora of North America species comparison

1–many, erect or ascending, branches few–many, ascending, villous with septate trichomes.

1–several, (fleshy), erect or ascending, simple to sparingly branched in distal 1/2, sometimes openly branched, glabrous to villous or tomentose with septate trichomes, sometimes ± glabrate;

branches on distal stems 0–many, ascending.

blades oblong-lanceolate to obovate, 15–40 × 6–15 cm, margins plane or revolute, coarsely 1–2-pinnatifid with rigidly divergent lobes, sometimes merely spinose-dentate, lobes triangular to lanceolate, entire to spiny-dentate, main spines 2–10 mm, abaxial faces gray-tomentose, villous with septate trichomes along veins, adaxial green, covered with short appressed bristlelike spines, sometimes tomentose when young;

basal present or absent at flowering, petioles winged, bases tapered;

principal cauline winged-petiolate, mid and distal becoming sessile, well distributed or not, progressively reduced distally, at least distal decurrent as long spiny wings;

distal cauline often more deeply lobed than proximal, main lobes rigidly spiny, margins spinulose, otherwise entire.

blades oblong, 10–30 × 1–5 cm, margins usually strongly undulate, unlobed and spiny-dentate or shallowly to deeply pinnatifid with 10–20 pairs of lobes, teeth or lobes closely spaced, often overlapping, lance-oblong to broadly triangular, deeply 3-lobed, ± spiny-dentate, main spines 2–12 mm, abaxial faces glabrous or villous with septate trichomes along midveins to densely arachnoid-tomentose, adaxial glabrous or villous with septate trichomes along midveins;

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

principal cauline many, well distributed, proximally ± winged-petiolate, distally sessile, gradually reduced;

distal not much reduced, often closely subtending heads.

1–6 cm.

0–14+ cm.

hemispheric to campanulate, 3–4 × 2–4 cm, loosely arachnoid-tomentose.

green or suffused with dark purple, broadly ovoid to campanulate, 2–5 × 1.5–5 cm (appearing wider when pressed), loosely to densely villous or tomentose with septate trichomes and/or arachnoid-tomentose with finer, non-septate trichomes.

purple (rarely white), 25–35 mm, tubes 18–25 mm, throats 5–6 mm, lobes 5–7 mm;

style tips 3.5–6 mm.

ochroleucous or yellow to lavender, pink, or purple, 15–35 mm, tubes 3.5–10 mm, throats 5–14 mm, lobes (linear), 4–12.5 mm;

style tips 3–6 mm, conspicuously exserted beyond corolla lobes.

in 10–12 series, strongly imbricate, linear-lanceolate (outer) to linear (inner), outer and middle appressed, (bases stramineous), margins entire, abaxial faces without glutinous ridge, apices radiating, greenish, spines 2–5 mm;

apices of inner phyllaries flat, serrulate to minutely erose.

in 4–5 series, subequal, bases short-appressed, abaxial faces without or with very narrow glutinous ridge, apices usually stiffly ascending to spreading, linear-acicular, tapering to spines 7–35 mm;

outer usually pinnately spiny, sometimes entire;

apices of inner straight, plane or spine-tipped.

few–many in corymbiform or paniculiform arrays.

1–many, erect or nodding, closely subtended by spiny-fringed bracts, usually sessile or short-pedunculate and crowded in subcapitate, spiciform, or racemiform (less commonly in openly branched) arrays.

light brown with darker streaks, 3–4.5 mm, apical collar not differentiated;

pappi 20–30 mm.

dark brown, 5.5–7 mm, apical collars stramineous or not differentiated;

pappi 12–25 mm.

= 68.