Flora of North America species comparison

1, erect (straight, stout), glabrous or hairy.

1–5+, erect, straight (stout, brittle), glabrous or sparsely hirtellous in lines.

thin, scabrous, apices mucronate, abaxial faces glabrous (vein areoles indistinct, elongate), adaxial glabrous or sparsely scabrous (var. hesperium);

basal withering by flowering, petiolate to subpetiolate (petioles winged, ciliate, bases dilated, sheathing), blades elliptic-oblanceolate or obovate to suborbiculate, 10–80 × 5–20 mm, cuneate to attenuate, margins crenate-serrate, apices acute to obtuse or rounded;

proximal cauline withering by flowering, sessile or subsessile, blades lance-ovate or oblanceolate to linear-lanceolate, (40–)50–150 × (3–)10–20(–35) mm, progressively reduced distally, bases cuneate, ± decurrent, margins serrate, apices acute to acuminate;

distal sessile, blades oblanceolate to linear, 30–100(–140) mm, only slightly reduced distally, bases cuneate, margins entire.

(paler green or bluish green abaxially) firm, margins scabrous, apices mucronate, faces glabrous, abaxial raised midribs scabrous to glabrate;

basal withering by flowering, subpetiolate to shortly petiolate (petioles winged, sheathing, coarsely ciliate), blades oblanceolate to oblong-oblanceolate, 45–65 × 5–8 mm, bases cuneate, margins shallowly crenate, strigoso-ciliate, apices acute, obtuse or rounded;

proximal cauline withering by flowering, subpetiolate or sessile, blades elliptic-lanceolate to linear-oblanceolate or -lanceolate, 40–120 × 5–20 mm, reduced distally, bases cuneate to slightly attenuate or rounded, slightly clasping, margins serrulate-crenate or entire, apices acute to acuminate;

distal sessile, blades oblanceolate or elliptic-lanceolate to linear-lanceolate or linear-oblong, (10–)15–100 × 1–5 mm, gradually reduced distally (more strongly so on branches), bases cuneate or rounded, margins entire, apices acuminate.

0.5–5 cm, ± pilose, bracts 1–3(–5), linear-oblanceolate to -lanceolate, foliaceous, ciliate.

long, thin, (1–)4–10(–25) cm, branches to 10 cm, bracts 8–15, regularly spaced but becoming crowded distally, appressed or ascending, linear-oblong to subulate, 1.5–4 mm, grading into phyllaries, mucronulate.

campanulate to cylindric, 3–8 mm.

turbinate to cylindro-campanulate, 7–12 mm.

16–50;

corollas white to pinkish or pale blue-violet, laminae 3–10(–14) × 0.5–1.3 mm.

14–20;

corollas light blue to lavender or purple, laminae 12–20 × (1–)1.5–2.8 mm.

(13–)20–40(–52);

corollas yellow becoming purple, 2.8–5.8 mm, tubes shorter than funnelform throats, lobes sometimes ± spreading, triangular, 0.4–1.2 mm.

15–20+;

corollas yellow turning purple, (4.5–)5–7 mm, tubes slightly shorter than narrowly funnelform throats, lobes triangular, 0.5–1 mm.

in (3–)4–6 series, appressed or slightly spreading, linear-lanceolate to linear (innermost), sometimes slightly dilated distally, ± strongly unequal to subequal (var. hesperium), bases indurate 1/4–1/2, margins scarious, erose, hyaline, sparsely ciliolate, green zones lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, outer sometimes foliaceous (particularly var. hesperium), apices acute to acuminate (outer) or acuminate to caudate (inner), mostly mucronulate, abaxial faces glabrous, adaxial sparsely strigillose.

in 6–9 series, appressed or ± spreading, shortly oblong-lanceolate to subulate (outer) to linear-oblong or linear (inner), strongly unequal, bases indurate 1/2–5/6, abaxially rounded, margins scarious, erose, hyaline, sparsely ciliolate distally, green zones oblanceolate to rhombic-oblanceolate, in distal 1/6–1/2, apices acute (outer) to obtuse or rounded (inner), often callous-mucronulate, faces glabrous.

in ample or diffuse to narrow, elongate, leafy, paniculiform arrays, branches ± ascending, rarely secund, branch leaves often longer than pedicels.

in open, broad, much ramified, paniculiform arrays, branches ascending to arching, thin, brittle, remotely leafy, rarely sessile.

gray or tan, obovoid, ± compressed, 1.5–2 mm, 4–5-nerved, faces sparsely strigillose;

pappi white to sordid or tawny, 5.5–6 mm.

yellow-tan or light brown to gray, obovoid, ± compressed, (1.8–)2–2.8 mm, 2–4-nerved, faces minutely strigillose;

pappi whitish to reddish brown, 4.5–6.4 mm.

= 96.