Flora of North America species comparison

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Kochia
Habit Herbs and subshrubs, annual or perennial, glabrous or densely tomentose-sericeous.
Stems

erect, ascending, or prostrate, simple or branched, not jointed, not armed, not fleshy;

branches alternate [proximal sometimes almost opposite].
Leaves

alternate [rarely proximal almost opposite], sessile (sometimes narrowed into pseudopetiole);

blade obovate-lanceolate, lanceolate, linear, or filiform, flat or semiterete, base truncate, margins entire, apex rounded.
Inflorescences

terminal, spicate or paniculately branched;

flowers solitary or in 2–5-flowered clusters in axils of bracts;

bracts leaflike.
Flowers

bisexual or pistillate, sessile;

perianth segments 5, with horizontal, membranous wing [sometimes reduced to slightly winged tubercles] adaxially;

stamens 5;

stigmas 2–3.
Seeds

wedge-shaped;

seed coat dull brown, slightly ribbed;

embryo annular;

perisperm copious.
Fruiting

structures: perianth covering utricles at maturity, utricles compressed-spheric or compressed-elliptic;

pericarp free or nearly so, membranous.
x

= 9.

Kochia
Distribution
from USDA
North America; Eurasia; Africa [Some species nearly worldwide (as introduced)]
Discussion

Species 13–16 (3 in the flora).

Kochia occurs mostly in steppe, desert, and semidesert zones.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Key
1. Annual herbs; proximal cauline leaves usually (1-)3-5-veined, distinctly cuneate at base, sometimes narrowed into pseudopetiole [17a. Kochia sect. Semibassia]
K. scoparia
1. Subshrubs, stem bases woody; all leaves 1-veined (or vein obscure), sessile [17b. Kochia sect. Neokochia]
→ 2
2. Stems abundantly branched near base, distal parts simple or nearly so, finely white- tomentose or becoming glabrous; leaves usually overlapping
K. americana
2. Stems solitary or little-branched at base, branched throughout, grayish or brownish puberulent; leaves generally not overlapping
K. californica
Source FNA vol. 4, p. 310. Author: Sergei L. Mosyakin.
Parent taxa Chenopodiaceae
Subordinate taxa
K. americana, K. californica, K. scoparia
Synonyms Bassia section K.
Name authority Roth: J. Bot. (Schrader) 1800(1): 307. (1801)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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