Flora of North America species comparison

emerging from point of origin on underside of main stems.

on substrate surface.

on substrate surface or subterranean, long-creeping.

absent.

clustered, 0.6–1.2 cm diam., dominant main shoot with 3–6 branches mostly in lower 1/2.

scattered along horizontal stem, 5–16 mm diam., round or flat in cross section, unbranched or with 1–4 lateral branchlets.

few and like upright shoots;

annual bud constrictions abrupt, branchlets mostly spreading.

spreading, often somewhat ascending in distal 1/3 of branches, medium green, linear, 4–6 × 0.4–0.8 mm;

margins entire;

apex with narrow hair tip 2.5–4 mm.

not imbricate, linear to linear-lanceolate;

leaves on horizontal stems scattered, appressed, membranous;

leaves on lateral branchlets mostly 6-ranked or more, monomorphic with few exceptions, appressed, ascending to spreading, margins entire to dentate.

3.5–12.5 cm, with remote pseudowhorls of appressed leaves, loosely branched into 2–5 alternate stalks, 0.5–0.8 cm.

2–5 on alternate stalks (if double, usually with stalks 5–8 mm), 15–25 × 3–6 mm.

single and sessile or multiple and pedunculate, apex blunt to acute;

peduncle, when present, conspicuously leafy;

sporophylls extremely reduced, much shorter than peduncle or stem leaves.

reniform.

reticulate, sides at equator convex, angles acute.

1.5–2.5 mm, apex abruptly reduced to hair tip.

nonphotosynthetic, mycorrhizal, subterranean, flat and irregularly button-shaped, with ring meristem around circumference.

= 34.

= 68.