Flora of North America species comparison

ribbed to striate, hispid or glabrous;

prickles infrastipular, paired, also sparse along internodes, recurved.

erect, scandent, decumbent, prostrate, or sprawling, terete, striate, or ribbed, prickles infrastipular, irregular in internodes, or along ribs; short shoots (brachyblasts) sometimes present, glabrous or pubescent.

stipules lanceolate, 7–12 mm, glabrous to sparsely setose;

petiole 1–4.5 cm;

primary rachis 0–2.5 mm;

pinnae 1 or 2 pairs, digitate;

leaflets 15–25 pairs, blades obliquely linear-oblong, 5–10 × 2–2.5 mm, margins setose, 1 eccentric vein prominent abaxially, apex acute to mucronate, surfaces glabrous.

alternate, usually even-bipinnate, rarely some leaves unipinnate (M. borealis, M. turneri);

stipules present;

petiolate, petiole eglandular [glandular];

pinnae [0 or]1–14[–33] pairs;

leaflets 1–40[–95] pairs, opposite, blade margins entire, surfaces glabrous or pubescent.

95–125-flowered, axillary, globose or subglobose capitula, solitary or fascicles of 2 or 3, also disposed in racemiform branches, 10–15 mm diam.;

bracts linear to lanceolate, 1/2–2/3 corolla length.

5–180-flowered, usually axillary, sometimes also terminal, capitula, spikes, or racemes;

bracts present.

1–3 cm.

unarmed or prickly.

0 mm.

bisexual;

calyx campanulate, lobes 4, 1/10 corolla length;

corolla pink, glabrous, lobes 4, 1/4 corolla length;

stamens 4, filaments distinct to base, lilac;

ovary sessile to shortly stipitate, glabrous;

style attenuate at apex;

stigma poriform.

mimosoid, bisexual, or staminate present at base of inflorescence;

calyx campanulate, lobes 4 or 5(or 6), valvate;

corolla white, pink, purple, or purple-pink, lobes 4 or 5(or 6), valvate;

stamens 8 or 10 (2 times corolla lobes) or 4[5] (as many as corolla lobes), distinct or connate at bases, exserted, white, pink or lilac;

anthers dorsifixed, introrse, eglandular;

ovary sessile or stipitate;

style longer than stamens;

stigma poriform, cupuliform, or tubular [obliquely funnelform].

legumes, sessile or stipitate, straight or curved, constricted or not between seeds, linear, oblong, or tetragonal [elliptic], dehiscent, craspedial, glabrous or pubescent, valves segmented with 1 seed each or entire, usually wider than margin, persistent margin usually narrow, sometimes as wide as or wider than valves, prickly or unarmed.

sessile, straight, linear-oblong, 10–15 × 3–4 mm, constricted between seeds, valves with 2–5 segments, margin armed, long-setose, apex acuminate, faces glabrous.

2–5, ochre, lenticular, 3–3.2 × 2.5–3 × 1–1.2 mm, testa smooth or porous, fissural line 90%.

1–18, ± isodiametric, lenticular, elliptic, oblong, or rhomboid, testa smooth or porous.

= 13.