Flora of North America species comparison

erect to straggling, branched or not, 4-angled, 3–32 cm, glabrous or softly pubescent, angles not minutely papillate-scabrid.

decumbent or ascending, diffusely branched, 4-sided, 5–40 cm, with single line of hairs along each internode.

sessile;

blade green, frequently glaucous, 1–3-veined, midrib prominent, lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, widest at base, 0.4–2.6(–4) cm × 1–4 mm, strongly coriaceous or not, base round, margins entire, convex, glabrous or ciliate, apex acute to acuminate, not spinescent, shiny, smooth, glabrous or sparingly villous, base usually glabrous, rarely with few cilia.

petiolate (proximal) or ± sessile (distal);

blade usually green, ovate to broadly elliptic, 0.5–4 cm × 2–20 mm, base round to cuneate, margins entire, apex acute or shortly acuminate, ± glabrous or ciliate at base.

with flowers solitary, or terminal, 3–30-flowered (rarely more) cymes;

bracts lanceolate, 2–10 mm, herbaceous with scarious margins, or scarious throughout, glabrous or ciliate.

terminal, 5–many-flowered cymes;

bracts ovate and shortly acuminate to lanceolate-acute, 1–40 mm, herbaceous.

ascending to erect, straight, 5–30 mm, glabrous or softly pubescent.

ascending, usually straight, deflexed at base in fruit, 3–40 mm, usually with line of hairs.

5–10 mm diam.;

sepals 5, 3-veined, midrib prominent, lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, 3.5–5 mm, margins convex, narrow, scarious, sometimes ciliate, apex acute, glabrous or pubescent;

petals 5, 3–8 mm, 1–1.5 times as long as sepals;

stamens 5–10;

styles 3(–6), ascending, curled at tip, ca. 1.5 mm.

2–5 mm diam.;

sepals 5, with obscure midrib, ovate-lanceolate, 4.5–5(–6) mm, margins narrow, scarious, apex obtuse, usually glandular-hairy;

petals absent or 5, 1–4 mm, shorter than to equaling sepals;

stamens 3–5(–8);

anthers red-violet;

styles 3, outwardly curved, becoming curled, 0.5–1 mm.

blackish purple or straw colored, ovoid to ovoid-lanceoloid, 4–6 mm, 1.5–2 times as long as sepals, apex broadly acute, opening by 6 valves;

carpophore absent.

green to straw colored, ovoid-oblong, 3–5 mm, somewhat longer than sepals, apex obtuse, opening by 6 valves;

carpophore absent.

brown, reniform to globose, 0.6–0.9 mm diam., shallowly tuberculate to smooth.

reddish brown, broadly reniform to round, 0.9–1.3 mm diam., with obtuse, round, or flat-topped (broader than tall) tubercles.

= 52–104, (107).

= 40, 42, 44.