Flora of North America species comparison

suberect to scandent or climbing, angular, striate, diffusely branched, glabrous, sometimes papillose, distal branches usually glabrous.

suberect, prostrate, or scandent, glabrous or puberulent, sometimes papillose.

ocrea mostly persistent, brownish hyaline, cylindric, 3–5 mm, margins truncate to rounded, eciliate, faces glabrous;

petiole (3–)6–12(–17) mm, glabrous;

blade triangular-lanceolate, (2–)2.5–4(–5.5) × (0.8–)1.2–2.5(–3) cm, subcoriaceous, base hastate, margins entire or irregularly wavy, glabrous or scabrous, apex acute, glabrous adaxially and abaxially, sometimes papillose abaxially, minutely punctate abaxially and adaxially.

deciduous, cauline, alternate, usually petiolate;

ocrea usually deciduous, sometimes persistent, chartaceous;

petiole base articulated, extrafloral nectaries present;

blade linear to orbiculate, panduriform, or triangular-lanceolate, margins entire or irregularly wavy.

terminal and axillary, 3–5(–8) cm.

terminal and axillary, spikelike, essentially not pedunculate.

ascending to spreading, 1.5–2 mm.

prescent.

1(–3) per ocreate fascicle;

perianth white, greenish white, or greenish;

tepals connate ca. 1/4 their length, lanceolate-ovate to obovate, 2–3 mm, apex rounded to acute.

bisexual and unisexual, with staminate, pistillate, or sometimes both sexes occurring with bisexual flowers on the same plant, 1–2(–5) per ocreate fascicle, base stipelike;

perianth accrescent, white to greenish white, campanulate, glabrous;

tepals 5, connate proximally, sepaloid, dimorphic, outer slightly larger than inner.

anthers yellow or pink, ovate.

stamens 8 (9);

filaments distinct, adnate to base of perianth tube, glabrous;

anthers yellow or pink to purple, ovate to elliptic;

pistil rudimentary.

tube reddish purple to black in fruit.

tube white or reddish purple to black in fruit, becoming fleshy;

stamens rudimentary;

styles 3, spreading, connate proximally;

stigmas fimbriate.

usually included, black, subglobose, 3–4 × 2.5–3.5 mm, shiny, smooth.

completely or partly included in fleshy perianth, black or dark brown, unwinged, 3-gonous to subglobose, glabrous.

embryo straight.

= 10.