Flora of North America species comparison

superficial or only slightly buried in peaty soil, cordlike portions usually 1-branched, 40 cm × 2–5 mm, bearing scalelike leaves at nodes;

nodal roots absent.

with short, creeping branches, stout, 2–2.5 cm diam., covered with bases of old leaves;

roots numerous, fleshy.

simple or 1–2-branched, 3–8 dm.

simple or 1–2-branched, solid, 3–6 dm.

basal with blade slightly ribbed, 3–6 dm × 0.2–0.5 cm;

cauline 1–4, erect.

basal persistent, blade dark green, turning gray or yellow-brown when drying, veins not prominent, linear, 4–7 dm × 0.6–1 cm, usually longer than stem, glaucous or subglaucous, apex acute;

cauline 2–3, reduced.

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

spathes pale brown, narrowly lanceolate, 2–4 cm, scarious or partially membranaceous.

3–6-flowered;

spathes distant, inner sometimes 10 cm distal to outer, green, narrowly linear-lanceolate, 8–15 cm × 20–40 mm, herbaceous, margins and apex scarious.

perianth pale blue or blue-violet;

floral tube 0.2–0.3 cm;

sepals pale violet, veined deep violet basally, ovate, 4–5 × 1.3–2 cm, base abruptly attenuate;

petals lavender, oblanceolate, 3.5–4.5 × 0.7–1.5 cm;

ovary trigonal, sharply angled;

style arched, narrow, 2–3 cm, crests divergent, quadrate, 0.5–0.7 cm, margins serrate;

stigmas sharply triangular;

pedicel somewhat flattened, 3–7 cm, exserted from spathe.

perianth pale blue-violet or nearly white, with lilac-purple veins;

floral tube funnelform, 0.5–1.3 cm;

sepals spreading, then drooping at apex, white, flecked and veined with violet, obovate, 8–10 × 3–5 cm, base attenuate into narrow claw with prominent yellow ridge, signal a yellowish basal patch;

petals semierect, oblong, 8–9 × 1.5–2 cm, base gradually attenuate, apex emarginate, bluntly rounded;

ovary trigonal with central ridge in each face, 2–5 cm;

style narrow basally, widening distally, 3.5–4 × 0.6–1 cm, crests overlapping basally, subquadrate, 1–1.5 cm, margins incised;

stigmas obscurely to prominently 2-lobed, margins crenate;

pedicels stout, 3–9 cm, unequal at anthesis, becoming ± equal at maturity.

sharply 3-angled, almost winged, 3–4 × 1.2–1.4 cm, concave faces 6–14 mm wide.

6-ribbed, oblong-ovoid, tapering to either end, almost round in cross section, 8–9 cm.

in 1 row per locule, buff to dark brown, pyriform, with convex sides, 3–4 mm, smooth.

dark brown, globular, wrinkled.

= 42.

= 86, 88.