Flora of North America species comparison

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

with proximal cordlike portion 0.8–2 dm × 2 mm, bearing brown, scalelike leaves and rarely roots, distal portion enlarging to 3–5 × 0.8–1.2 cm, producing fibrous roots, 2–3 brown, sheathing, bractlike leaves, then 8–12 green foliage leaves; usually 2 cordlike rhizomes produced from apex as new growth begins in spring.

2–3-branched, solid, 10–15(–20+) dm.

simple, 0.8–4 cm.

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 with blade broadly linear at anthesis, slightly falcate, 4–6 cm × 6–8 mm, enlarging to 16 cm × 10 mm;

cauline with proximal 1–2 resembling basal leaves, 4–6 cm, distal 2 more sheathing of stem, exceeding spathes.

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)-flowered;

spathes green, outer closely sheathing inner and enclosing ovary, slightly keeled at midrib, 4.5 cm, ± equal, margins scarious.

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 sky blue;

floral tube dull yellow, funnelform, 1–2 cm, dilated upward to 4–5 mm diam.;

sepals 2–2.3 × 0.8 cm, tapering gradually into claw, apex emarginate, signal white with deep violet margin, with 3 yellow and white, toothed, low ridges;

petals spreading, narrowly oblanceolate, 1–1.5 × 0.4–0.5 cm, shorter and narrower than sepals, apex emarginate;

ovary sharply trigonal, 0.8–1 cm;

style 1–2 cm, crests linear to semiovate, 4 mm, margins crenate;

stigmas rounded, margins entire;

pedicel 0.6–1.5 cm.

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.

roundly triangular, 1.2 × 8 mm, enclosed in spathes.

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

dark brown, with white appendage spiraled around seed, ca. 3 mm, quickly drying when exposed to air.

= 44.

= 32, 42.