Flora of North America species comparison

1–5+, erect or ascending (straight, often stout), proximally usually ± densely hirtellous, sometimes glabrescent, distally hirsute.

1–5+, ascending to erect, strigose, villous, or lanate, especially distally.

thick, firm, margins (slightly undulate) scabrous, adaxial faces glabrous or strigose, scabrous, adaxial ± sparsely hirsute to scabro-hirtellous, sometimes ± scabrous (cauline sometimes with tufts of smaller leaves in axils);

basal withering by flowering, petiolate (petioles sometimes narrowly winged), blades oblong-ovate to lanceolate, 10–40 × 10–20 mm, bases deeply cordate, margins sparsely serrate to serrulate, apices usually acute, sometimes obtuse to rounded;

proximal cauline usually withering by flowering, petiolate (petioles slender to ± winged), blades ovate to broadly lanceolate, 40–90 × (15–) 25–50 mm, bases shallowly cordate or rounded to attenuate, rarely truncate, margins subentire or entire (rarely serrulate), apices acute or acuminate, with short callus point;

distal subpetiolate or sessile, blades ovate to lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, 10–70 × 1–10 mm, gradually or abruptly reduced distally, bases attenuate to cuneate, margins entire, apices acute to acuminate.

(grayish green) thin to firm, margins entire, apices acute, faces strigose;

basal withering by flowering, petiolate, blades narrowly oblanceolate, 50–100(–150) × 4–12(–15) mm, bases attenuate, margins scabrous to ciliate;

proximalmost cauline often withering by flowering (often with tufts of leaves in axils), sessile, blades linear to narrowly oblong, 30–70(–100) × 4–8(–10) mm, bases attenuate or cuneate, apices acute;

distal sessile, blades 15–80 × 2–8(–10) mm, bases cuneate, sometimes auriculate.

densely bracteate, 0.3–5(–10) cm (rarely subsesssile), bracts numerous, linear, 2–6 mm, mucronulate, grading into phyllaries.

densely short-strigose, bracts 1–6, linear-oblong, strigose.

campanulate, 5–10 mm.

campanulate, 4–7 mm.

18–45;

corollas usually bright lavender-blue to purple, seldom white, laminae 9–15(–18) × 1–3.2 mm.

15–40;

corollas pale violet, laminae 8–12(–15) × 1–1.5(–2) mm.

33–40+;

corollas cream or light yellow turning pinkish purple, (4–)4.5–5.5 mm, tubes shorter than funnelform throats, lobes sometimes ± spreading, triangular to lanceolate, 0.5–0.8 mm.

25–70+;

corollas yellow, 4–6 mm, lobes triangular, 0.4–0.8 mm.

in 4–6 series, oblong-lanceolate (outer) to oblanceolate-linear (innermost), unequal, bases indurate (appressed), margins ciliate to scabro-ciliate, green zones diamond-shaped to lanceolate, ± foliaceous distally, apices reflexed to squarrose, long-acuminate, apiculate, often purple, faces strigoso-hirtellous.

in 3–6 series, narrowly oblanceolate or linear (outer) to linear (inner), unequal, bases indurate, margins entire, narrowly scarious, ciliate, green zones obovate to elliptic, apices obtuse, mucronulate, faces usually strigose.

in open, diffuse, paniculiform arrays, branches divaricate, stout, long, densely bracteate.

(3–50+) in narrowly paniculiform arrays, branches 2–10(–20) cm.

deep purple to purplish brown or brown with purple speckles (nerves stramineous), oblong-obovoid, compressed, (1–)2.5–3.5(–3.8) mm, 5–6-nerved, faces glabrous;

pappi tawny or rose-tinged, 3.7–5.2 mm.

brown, cylindric to obovoid, not compressed, 1.5–3 mm, ribs 5–8, faces hairy;

pappi whitish, 4–6 mm.

= 16.

= 36.