Flora of North America species comparison

prostrate, much-branched, 5–10 cm, puberulent.

procumbent, branched from base, hirtellose; flowering stems 7–45 cm;

sterile stems 3–10 cm.

stipules ovate, 3–6 mm, apex subobtuse, entire;

blade narrowly elliptic-oblong or oblong to narrowly elliptic-oblanceolate, 2–5 × 0.2–1.8(–2) mm, fleshy, apex obtuse to subacute, glabrous.

stipules narrowly lanceolate, 6–13 mm, apex acuminate, often deeply cleft;

blade linear, 10–30 × 0.4–1 mm, leathery, apex short-spinose, minutely hirtellous to puberulent.

mostly solitary at end of shoots, almost concealed by leaves.;

flowers 5-merous, elliptic-oblong, with enlarged hypanthium and calyx straight to tapering distally, 2.5–2.8 mm, densely appressed-puberulent, sparsely so distally;

sepals whitish to green, veins absent, narrowly oblong to ovate-oblong, 1.5–1.7 mm, papery to herbaceous, margins white, 0.2–0.3 mm wide, papery, apex with subterminal awn, hood ascending as continuation of sepal, broadly rounded to notched, awn erect, white, 0.3–0.6(–1) mm, ± glabrous spine;

staminodes filiform, 0.7–0.9 mm;

style 1, cleft in distal 1/3, 0.8–1 mm.

5-merous, narrowly ovoid, with enlarged hypanthium and calyx tapering gradually distally, 2.8–5.1 mm, glabrous to puberulent, especially proximally;

sepals brown to yellowish, midrib and lateral pair of veins prominent, lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate, 2–2.9 mm, leathery to rigid, margins whitish, 0.1–0.2 mm wide, papery, apex terminated by awn, hood rounded-triangular, awn curved outward, green to red-brown, ± conic, 0.4–1.1 mm, scabrous, distinct spine absent;

staminodes filiform, 0.8–1 mm;

style 1, cleft in distal 1/5, 1.2–2 mm.

ovoid, 1.3–1.5 mm, smooth, glabrous.

ovoid to obovoid, 1.8–2 mm, smooth, glabrous.

terminal, 3–10+-flowered, somewhat open to compact, often forming clusters 6–30 mm wide.

= 32.