Flora of North America species comparison

radially symmetric, underground (rhizomatous) and aerial, not readily fragmenting, irregularly forked;

both rhizomatous and aerial stems often with 1 branch arrested, budlike, tips straight; rhizomatous stems hard to distinguish on wholly creeping plants;

aerial stems erect or ascending, sometimes decumbent to slightly creeping, budlike arrested branches restricted mostly near stem base.

creeping, not readily fragmenting, upperside and underside structurally slightly different, irregularly forked, without budlike arrested branches, tips straight;

main stem indeterminate, lateral branches determinate, ascending, 1–2-forked.

dimorphic, not clearly ranked.

monomorphic, not in defined pseudowhorls, loosely appressed, ascending, green, linear-lanceolate, (1–)2.5–3 X (0.25–)0.4–0.6 mm (leaves in secondary and tertiary branches smaller);

abaxial ridges inconspicuous;

base rounded and adnate or cuneate and slightly decurrent, glabrous, seldom pubescent;

margins short-ciliate, cilia transparent, scattered, ascending, 0.02–0.75 mm;

apex plane, blunt, acute to slightly acuminate (not distinctly bristled).

solitary, 0.5–2.5(–3.5) cm;

sporophylls lanceolate, strongly tapering toward tip, abaxial ridges prominent, base glabrous, margins short-ciliate, apex long-bristled.

solitary, 2–4 mm;

sporophylls deltate-ovate to lanceolate-ovate, abaxial ridges not prominent, base glabrous, margins short-ciliate, apex not keeled, acute.

borne on upperside of stems, restricted to lower stems or throughout stem length, 0.3–0.5 mm diam.

borne on upperside of stems, throughout stem length, (0.17–)0.2–0.3 mm diam.

stem leaves persistent or deciduous, tightly appressed, scalelike.

stem leaves appressed, ascending, green, linear-lanceolate, 3–4.7 × 0.45–0.65 mm;

abaxial ridges present;

base abruptly adnate, rounded, pubescent;

margins long-ciliate, cilia white to whitish, spreading, 0.1–0.2 mm;

apex not keeled to slightly keeled;

bristle white to whitish or yellowish to greenish near base, puberulent, 0.65–1.85 mm (1/3–1/2 length of leaves).