Flora of North America species comparison

usually erect or ascending, occasionally decumbent, leafy mostly in proximal 2/3 of plant, openly forked distally, 4–15 dm, basally usually glabrous or puberulent in 2 lines, rarely spreading-pubescent; distally stems usually puberulent in 2 lines, occasionally glabrate, rarely spreading glandular-pubescent.

erect to decumbent, unarmed, without glutinous bands on internodes.

ascending at 45–80°, abruptly reduced to inflorescence;

petiole 0.2–2 cm;

blade green, ovate-lanceolate to ovate or triangular, 3–10 × 2–6.5 cm, usually ± thin, base obtuse, round, truncate, or cordate, apex acute to acuminate, rarely rounded, surfaces usually glabrous, sometimes puberulent or sparsely hispidulous.

petiolate or sessile, ± equal in each pair;

blade thin to thick and fleshy, base ± symmetric.

terminal and in upper axils, subumbellate clusters at ends of long, forked branches;

peduncle 5–20 mm, usually pubescent with ascending, often curved, glandular or eglandular hairs, crosswalls of hairs pale;

involucres pale green, often tinged pinkish, widely bell-shaped to almost rotate, 4–6 mm in flower, 8–15 mm in fruit, glabrous or glabrate but with minute curved hairs on margins, or rarely puberulent or pilose throughout, 50–90% connate, lobes ovate to broadly ovate.

terminal and axillary, terminating in pedunculate involucres subtending 1–16 flowers, usually cymose, sometimes consisting of single involucre in leaf axil;

bracts persistent, 5, connate or, rarely, distinct, ± ovate, forming weakly to strongly accrescent, herbaceous to papery involucre.

(2–)3(–5) per involucre;

perianth usually pink to reddish purple, rarely white, 1 cm.

bisexual, chasmogamous and/or cleistogamous; cleistogamous perianth small dome atop basal portion; chasmogamous perianth radially symmetric or slightly bilaterally symmetric, campanulate to funnelform, constricted beyond ovary, tube gradually to abruptly expanded, limb 5-lobed;

stamens 3–6, exserted;

styles exserted beyond stamens;

stigmas capitate.

dark grayish brown to reddish brown (ribs and tubercles usually slightly paler), narrowly obovate and tapering at both ends, 3.4–5 mm, shaggy-pubescent with spreading, sometimes tufted, hairs, 0.3–0.4 mm, sometimes also with layer of minute hairs;

ribs usually irregularly and deeply notched, especially toward apex, round to bluntly angled, 0.5–0.75 times width of sulci, 0.5–1 times as wide as high;

sulci with pale small to tall tubercles that are sometimes horizontally lengthened and shelflike.

radially symmetric, with (4–)5 round or angular ribs separated by usually broad sulci, or ribs not well defined or not evident, obovoid, ellipsoid, or nearly globose, smooth or tuberculate, stiffly coriaceous, glabrous or pubescent, without glands.

= 58.