Flora of North America species comparison

1–5+, erect (straight, often slender, brittle), densely or sparsely strigose to glabrescent or glabrate.

1–5+, ascending to erect (straight, slender, 1–2.5(–3) mm diam.), glabrous.

firm, margins entire to crenulate-serrate, recurved, scabrous, apices sharply white-mucronate, abaxial faces glabrous or glabrate to sparsely strigillose, adaxial glabrous or glabrate to submarginally scabrous (short-strigose), cauline withering by flowering (except on array branches), often with axillary leaf clusters;

basal withering by flowering, petiolate, petioles winged, sheathing, strigose-ciliate, blades oblanceolate to spatulate (often declined), 8–50 × 3–15 mm, bases attenuate to cuneate, margins crenate-serrate, apices obtuse or rounded to ± acute;

proximal cauline (mostly declined) subpetiolate (petioles widely winged, clasping) or sessile (then not or barely clasping), blades linear-oblanceolate, 25–120 × 1.5–9 mm, bases cuneate to slightly attenuate;

distal (ascending or spreading) sessile, blades oblong or linear-lanceolate to linear, 2–45 × 0.5–4 mm, reduced distally (abruptly on branches), bases cuneate to rounded, not clasping, margins entire or serrate.

thin, margins scabrous to scabrellous or eciliate, apices mucronulate, faces glabrous;

basal persistent or withering by flowering, petiolate (petioles slightly winged, sheathing), blades spatulate to elliptic or oblanceolate, 10–40 × 5–11 mm, bases cuneate to attenuate, margins crenate-serrate, apices obtuse to acute;

proximal cauline persistent or withering by flowering, ± broadly winged-petiolate or sessile, blades oblong, lanceolate or elliptic-lanceolate to oblanceolate, or linear-lanceolate, 20–100 × 3–9 mm, bases attenuate to cuneate, slightly clasping, margins serrulate or entire;

distal sessile, blades oblanceolate to linear-lanceolate or linear, 10–60 × 1–7 mm, gradually reduced distally, bases cuneate to tapering, margins serrulate or entire, apices acute to acuminate.

slender, usually stiff (sometimes lax), (0.5–)1–5 cm (rarely subsessile), progressively reduced distally, usually not secund, sparsely strigillose or glabrous, bracts 5–16+, spreading to ascending, linear-oblong or -elliptic to subulate or linear, progressively reduced distally, grading into phyllaries.

ascending, 0.2–2.5+ cm, glabrous, bracts 1–4, subulate to linear.

cylindro-campanulate, (3–)4.5–6.3 mm.

cylindro-campanulate, 3.3–4.5(–5) mm.

15–33;

corollas pale blue, pink, or lavender to white, laminae (4–)5–7(–8) × 1–1.7 mm.

14–27;

corollas white, laminae 4.3–8.2 × 0.7–0.8 mm.

15–30;

corollas cream to pale yellow turning pink, 3.5–4.5 mm, tubes shorter than to equal to narrowly funnelform throats, lobes lanceolate, (0.4–)0.6–1.1 mm.

20–30;

corollas pale yellow becoming purplish, 3–4.1 mm, tubes shorter to nearly equaling funnelform throats, lobes lanceolate, 0.5–1 mm.

in 4–6 series, appressed or slightly spreading, oblong-oblanceolate (outer) to linear-oblanceolate or linear (innermost), strongly unequal, bases indurate (1/2–)2/3–4/5, margins hyaline, scarious, erose, distally ciliolate, green zones oblanceolate to elliptic (subapical), apices acute to obtuse (scarious), sometimes faintly reddish, mucronulate, faces usually glabrous, sometimes glabrate.

in 4–5 series oblong-lancoelate (outer) to linear-lanceolate (inner) or linear (innermost), unequal, bases indurate 1/2+, margins scarious, erose, hyaline, ciliolate, green zones lanceolate, apices acute to acuminate or caudate, mucronulate or apiculate, sometimes purplish, faces glabous.

in remote, diffuse, open, paniculiform arrays, branches numerous, ascending to stiffly ascending, secondary ones stiff, racemiform (usually not secund).

{(10–)25–100} in paniculiform arrays, branches ascending (1–10 heads per branch).

pink or stramineous with pink streaks, or gray (± dark, nerves stramineous), oblong-obovoid, sometimes ± compressed, 1.5–2.5 mm, 3–4-nerved (nerves prominent), faces strigillose;

pappi white to sordid, 4 mm.

tan (nerves stramineous), obovoid, ± compressed, 3.5–4 mm, 4–5-nerved, faces strigillose;

pappi white, 3–3.6 mm.

= 16, 32.

= 16, 32.