Flora of North America species comparison

central stem usually erect, usually thickened at base and spongy, branched or unbranched, branches few–several, slender, decumbent to ascending, from base, usually encircling central stem in older plants, 10–40(–100) cm.

erect, usually flushed with red proximally, sometimes green or red throughout, unbranched or with branches obliquely arising from rosette and secondary branches arising from main stem, 50–200 cm.

in a basal rosette and cauline, rosette usually well developed (except subsp. howellii), basal 5–25 × 1–5 cm, cauline 4–12(–18) × 0.5–4 cm;

petiole 1.5–8 cm;

blade rhombic-obovate, lanceolate, or oblanceolate, margins subentire, dentate, or pinnatifid.

in a basal rosette and cauline, basal 10–30 × 1.2–4(–5) cm, cauline 5–20 × 1–2.5(–4) cm;

blade dull green or grayish green, narrowly oblanceolate, oblanceolate to narrowly elliptic, or narrowly lanceolate, margins flat or undulate, dentate to subentire, teeth sometimes widely spaced, sometimes sinuate-dentate proximally;

bracts persistent.

dense to open, erect, unbranched.

1–several opening per day near sunset;

buds nodding, weakly or strongly quadrangular or fluted in distal 1/2, with free tips 0–9 mm;

floral tube 20–40 mm;

sepals (13–)15–35 mm, not spotted;

petals white, fading pink to deep pink, broadly obovate or obcordate, 15–44 mm;

filaments 8–15 mm, anthers 5–14 mm;

style 35–60 mm, stigma exserted beyond anthers at anthesis.

opening near sunset;

buds erect, 3–5 mm diam., with free tips terminal, erect, 0.5–3 mm;

floral tube 23–44 mm;

sepals green to yellowish green, red-striped, or flushed with red, 9–18 mm;

petals yellow to pale yellow, fading orange or pale yellow, very broadly obcordate, 7–20 mm;

filaments 7–15 mm, anthers 4–10 mm, pollen ca. 50% fertile;

style 30–55 mm, stigma surrounded by anthers at anthesis.

spreading, straight to curved, becoming somewhat woody in age, cylindrical to slightly 4-angled, widest toward base, tapering from base to apex, (15–)30–80 × 1.5–5 mm;

sessile.

erect or slightly spreading, dull green or gray-green when dry, lanceoloid, 20–43 × 4–7 mm, free tips of valves 1–2 mm.

numerous, in 1 row per locule, buff with dark spots or black, narrowly obovoid, 1.5–2.8 mm.

1–2 × 0.5–1.2 mm.