Flora of North America species comparison

1–5+, erect (light brown to grayish brown), densely hispidulo-hirsute.

1–5+, ascending to erect (straight, sometimes stout), proximally glabrous, distally ± densely hirtellous.

light green, thin to firm;

basal withering by flowering, sessile, blades oblanceolate, 10–40 × 3–10 mm, attenuate, margins usually entire, rarely remotely serrate, piloso-ciliate, apices obtuse, rounded to mucronulate, faces sparsely to moderately strigose;

proximal cauline sometimes persistent by flowering, sessile, blades linear or oblong to elliptic-oblanceolate, 40–60 × 3–10 mm, bases rounded or slightly clasping, margins entire, scabrous, apices acute to obtuse, faces ± copiously hirsute;

distal sessile, blades oblanceolate, 15–45 × 2–3(–4.5) mm, progressively reduced distally, bases cuneate, margins entire, apices acute, white-spine-tipped, faces sparsely strigose.

thin, margins often slightly revolute, scabrous, apices mucronate or mucronulate, abaxial faces sparsely to moderately hispid, especially along veins, adaxial glabrous (midveins scabrous, veins marked) to strigoso-hispid (basal);

basal withering by flowering (new winter rosette sometimes developing), petiolate (petioles 1–2 times as long as blades, sometimes narrowly winged, sheathing, densely pilose or hirsute), blades ovate to lance-ovate, 10–60 × 10–35 mm, deeply to shallowly cordate or rounded, margins crenate or crenate-serrate, apices obtuse to acute;

proximal cauline mostly persistent, narrowly petiolate (petioles slender, progressively reduced distally, bases at most slightly clasping), blades ovate to lanceolate, 50–150 × 20–60(–70) mm, progressively reduced distally, bases shallowly cordate to subcordate, truncate, or rounded, sometimes oblique, margins entire, scabrous or shallowly crenate-serrate (proximal), apices acute to acuminate;

distal short-petiolate (petioles sometimes narrowly winged, sometimes slightly clasping) or sessile (distalmost, rameal), blades ovate to lanceolate (rameal lance-linear to linear, sharply smaller), 8–80 × 1–40 mm, gradually reduced distally, bases rounded to cuneate or attenuate, margins entire to subentire, apices acute to acuminate.

hispid, bracts 1–3+, oblong-lanceolate, 3–5 mm, not grading into phyllaries.

0.2–3(–5) cm, densely hirtellous, bracts 3–10+, ovate or lanceolate to subulate, grading into phyllaries.

campanulate to hemispheric, 4–6 mm.

cylindro-campanulate, 4–6 mm.

20–35;

corollas azure blue to violet or lavender, laminae 5–10 × 0.6–1.2 mm.

13–15(–20);

corollas usually blue or purple-blue, seldom pinkish or white, laminae (10–)11–16 × 1.3–3.1 mm.

20–30+;

corollas light yellow turning pinkish to purple, 3–4 mm, tubes ca. 1/2 narrowly funnelform throats, lobes triangular, 0.5–0.7 mm, glabrous.

16–23(–28?);

corollas light yellow becoming reddish purple, 4.6–7 mm, tubes shorter than funnelform throats, lobes lanceolate, 0.4–1.1 mm.

in 3–5 series, linear-lanceolate, ± unequal to subequal, bases ± indurate, margins hyaline proximally, outer distally hispido-scabrous, green zones diamond-shaped, restricted to distal 1/2–1/4, apices (outer) spreading to reflexed, acute, subspinulose, (inner) acuminate, purplish, faces (outer) scabroso-puberulent or strigose, eglandular, inner distally stipitate-glandular.

in 4–5(–6) series, appressed, lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate (outer) to linear-lanceolate or linear (inner), strongly unequal, bases indurate 1/2–5/6, margins scarious, erose, hyaline, ciliolate, green zones lanceolate to diamond-shaped (midveins below green zone sometimes inflated and brownish), apices acute to acuminate, often involute, mucronulate, faces strigilloso-hirsutulous.

in ample, leafy, paniculiform arrays, branches ascending, sometimes secund (heads often crowded).

usually in open, diffuse to narrow, paniculiform arrays, sometimes racemiform, branches widely spreading, usually divaricate to arching, sometimes ascending, sometimes ± secund, abundantly leafy.

dull purple or brown, obovoid, not compressed, 1.5–2 mm, 7–9-nerved, faces densely sericeous;

pappi tan to tawny, sometimes rose to violet-tinged, 3.5–5.5 mm.

dull purple or brown, oblong-obovoid, compressed, 2.5–3.7 mm, 4–7-nerved, faces glabrous;

pappi reddish brown, tawny, or rose-tinged, 4–6.2 mm.

= 10.

= 16, 32.