Flora of North America species comparison

prostrate to erect, often zigzagged, reddish brown, simple or branched from base, wiry, 2–30 cm, papillose-scabrid-ulous.

prostrate to ascending, branched at proximal and middle nodes, not wiry, 20–100 cm.

evenly distributed or crowded at branch tips, articulated to ocreae, basal leaves persistent, hardly reduced distally;

ocrea 1–4 mm, papillose-scabridulous, proximal part cylindric, distal part entire or dentate-lacerate;

petiole 0.1–3 mm;

blade 1-veined, not pleated, narrowly elliptic, elliptic, ovate, obovate, or subround, 6–27 × 3–8 mm, margins flat, smooth, irregularly thickened or papillose-denticulate, apex apiculate, green adaxially.

ocrea 6.5–12 mm, proximal part cylindric, pruinose, distal part hyaline, soon disintegrating into brown fibers or nearly completely deciduous;

petiole 0–1 mm;

blade green to bluish green, elliptic-lanceolate to linear, 10–35 × 1.5–15 mm, margins flat or narrowly revolute, apex acute;

middle stem leaves slightly larger than adjacent branch leaves, distal leaves overtopping flowers.

axillary;

cymes from near stem and branch bases, sometimes also crowded at branch apices, 1–3-flowered.

axillary, cymes uniformly distributed, 2–7-flowered.

enclosed in ocreae, erect to spreading, 2–3 mm.

exserted from ocreae, 2.5–5(–7) mm.

semi-open or closed;

perianth 1.8–2.5 mm;

tube 22–29% of perianth length;

tepals overlapping, greenish with narrow white or pink margins, almost sepaloid, oblong, cucullate, ± navicular, apex rounded;

midveins thickened, unbranched;

stamens 8.

semi-open;

perianth 3.5–5.5 mm;

tube 28–39% of perianth length;

tepals slightly overlapping, green, margins white to pink, petaloid, not keeled, oblong to obovate, not cucullate;

veins branched;

stamens 8.

enclosed in perianth or tip exserted, black, elliptic to ovate, 1.8–2.3 mm, faces subequal, smooth, shiny.

exserted from perianth, pale brown to dark brown, ovate, 3-gonous, (3.5–)4.1–5.5(–6.5) mm, faces subequal, apex not beaked, edges straight, shiny, smooth or with fine tubercles especially toward apex; late-season achenes unknown.