Flora of North America species comparison

green, extensively branched, forming large clumps, 2–4 cm diam., with pale leaf scars.

creeping, not producing dense clumps, covered with remains of old leaves, slender to moderately thick, 0.5–0.9 cm diam.;

roots fibrous.

2–3-branched, solid, 10–15(–20+) dm.

simple, solid, 0.5–3 dm.

basal 4–6, erect, blade bright green, ensiform, 10–13 dm × 2–3 cm, apex slightly curved;

cauline with blade foliaceous, appearing as elongated spathe, 5–6.5 dm × 2–3 cm, not exceeding flowers.

basal deciduous, blade pale green, not pink basally, 2–4.5 dm × 0.2–0.6(–1) cm, sometimes glaucous, margins not thickened;

cauline usually 1–several, spreading, sheathing for about 1/2 length, foliaceous, blade not inflated.

2–3-flowered, branch units 1–2-flowered;

spathes tightly enclosing ovary and pedicel, 15–20 cm, subequal;

outer narrowly lanceolate, keeled, margins pale, narrow, inner margins translucent, broad, scarious.

1–2(–3)-flowered;

spathes divergent, separated by 1.5–4 cm, linear to linear-lanceolate, unequal, outer 5–11 cm × 4–7 mm, inner 5–6 cm × 2–3 mm, herbaceous, apex acute.

perianth blue or blue-purple;

floral tube tubular-prismatic, 9-ribbed and -grooved, 4–5 cm;

sepals blue or blue-purple with white streaks surrounding signal, oval to orbicular-oval, 9.5–11 × 4–5 cm, base abruptly attenuate into claw, apex obtusely angled, signal with raised, yellow, pubescent central ridge, claw green, striate, 4–4.5 × 1–1.2 cm;

petals erect or spreading-erect, spatulate, 7–8.5 × 2–3 cm, base cuneate, apex emarginate;

ovary bluntly 6-angled, 4–4.5 cm;

style blue-violet, keeled, 3.5–4 cm, raised above sepals, crests recurved, 1.5–2 cm, margins sharply and irregularly serrate;

stigmas 2-lobed with 2 triangular teeth;

pedicel columnar, 3.5–5 cm.

perianth lavender, cream, or pale to deep yellow;

floral tube funnelform, 0.5–1(–1.5) cm;

sepals oblanceolate, 4–7 × 1.4–2 cm, base gradually attenuate;

petals narrowly oblanceolate, 3.5–6 × 0.5–1.1 cm, widest at about 1/2 their length, base abruptly attenuate, claw 1–2 mm wide;

ovary nearly cylindrical, 1–2 cm;

style 1.6–3 cm, crests overlapping, obtusely angled, 0.5–1.1 cm;

stigmas acutely triangular, margins entire;

pedicel 0.5–2.5 cm at anthesis, lengthening to 3.5–7.5 cm at maturity.

drooping, bright green, ellipsoid, hexagonal in cross section, with 6 broad, rounded lobes, 8–10 × 3 cm, indehiscent;

after anthesis, flower stem elongates, arching downward to push capsule into water, where walls are broken down and as funiculus is broken, seed rises to surface.

oblong-oval, 3-angled, tapering abruptly at either end, 2–3 cm.

in 2 rows per locule, brown, D-shaped, 8–10 mm wide, very corky.

brown, irregularly D-shaped, wrinkled.

= 44.

= 40.