Flora of North America species comparison

erect, green, usually divaricately branched, rarely simple, ± wiry, (2–)6–20(–25) cm, glabrous.

erect, green, divaricately branched, not wiry, 5–50 cm, usually papillose-scabrid-ulous, rarely glabrescent.

uniformly distributed, articulated to ocreae, basal leaves often caducous, distal leaves abruptly reduced to bracts;

ocrea 4–8 mm, glabrous, proximal part cylindric, distal part silvery, with inconspicuous veins, lacerate;

petiole absent;

blade 3-veined, lateral veins sometimes inconspicuous, without pleats, narrowly linear, 10–40 × 1–2.5 mm, margins ± revolute, smooth, apex acute or mucronate.

uniformly distributed, articulated to ocreae, basal leaves usually caducous, distal leaves abruptly reduced to bracts, articulated to ocreae;

ocrea 8–12 mm, papillose-scabridulous, proximal part cylindric, distal part disintegrating into a few persistent fibers;

petiole 0.1–2 mm;

blade 1-veined, not pleated, linear to lanceolate, 35–60 × 1–3 mm, margins flat or narrowly revolute, smooth or papillose-denticulate, apex acute, mucronate.

axillary and terminal, spikelike, subglobose to cylindric;

cymes in most axils or crowded distally, 1–3-flowered.

axillary and terminal, spikelike, dense;

cymes crowded, ± overlapping at branch tips, 2–5-flowered.

enclosed in ocreae, erect, 0.1–2 mm, sometimes absent.

enclosed in or slightly exserted from ocreae, erect to spreading, 0.5–2 mm.

mostly closed;

perianth 1.5–3 mm;

tube 19–40% of perianth length;

tepals overlapping, uniformly white, pink, or red, petaloid, oblong-lanceolate, ± navicular, apex acute to acuminate;

midveins usually unbranched or with 2 lateral branches proximally, moderately to strongly thickened, tepals appearing ± keeled;

stamens 3–8.

open or semi-open;

perianth 3–5 mm;

tube 9–17% of perianth length;

tepals overlapping, uniformly pink or white, petaloid, oblong-obovate, cucullate, navicular in distal 1/4, apex rounded;

midveins branched;

stamens 8.

enclosed in perianth, light yellow, light brown, or greenish brown to dark brown, ovate to lanceolate, 1.3–2.5 mm, faces subequal, shiny or dull, smooth or reticulate with longitudinal ridges.

enclosed in perianth, black, narrowly elliptic or elliptic-lanceolate to narrowly ovate, 3–5 mm, faces subequal, shiny, smooth to striate-tubercled.