Flora of North America species comparison

1–5+, ascending to erect, glabrous or sparsely puberulent.

1–5+, erect (light to reddish brown, straight, sometimes stout), proximally moderately to densely hispidulo-strigillose, sometimes glabrescent, distally moderately to densely hispidulo-strigillose, sometimes sparsely stipitate-glandular.

thin, margins entire, apices acute, faces glabrous or sparsely puberulent;

basal persistent, petiolate, blades narrowly elliptic to obovate, 50–150 × 3–15 mm, attenuate, margins entire;

proximal cauline sessile or subpetiolate, blades linear to narrowly elliptic, 50–150 × 2–15 mm, bases attenuate or cuneate;

distal sessile, blades 30–60 × 2–10 mm, reduced distally, bases cuneate to rounded.

(green to dark green) firm, margins entire, faces sparsely to moderately strigoso-scabrous, sometimes sparsely stipitate-glandular;

basal absent at flowering, sessile, blades (3-nerved) oblanceolate to obovate, 25–40 × 12–15 mm, bases attenuate, margins entire (remotely serrate), scabrous, apices obtuse, short-mucronate;

proximal cauline usually withering by flowering, sessile, blades obovate to oblanceolate, 25–80 × 5–18 mm, bases rounded or narrowly auriculate-clasping, margins distally shallowly serrate to subentire, scabrellous, apices spinulose-mucronate;

distal sessile, blades lanceolate or oblanceolate to oblong-lanceolate, 5–50 × 2–10 mm, reduced distally and becoming bractlike (arrays), bases subclasping to (distally) rounded, margins scabrous, apices acute to white-mucronulate or -subspinulose, faces sometimes shiny, minutely gland-dotted.

sparsely hairy, bracts 0–3+.

ascending (secund in well-developed arrays?), 0.3–4.5 cm, densely strigoso-hirsute, sometimes sparsely stipitate-glandular, bracts dense, spreading or reflexed (rarely ascending), narrowly oblong to linear-lanceolate, mostly ca. 3 × 1 mm, spinulose, sparsely to moderately strigilloso-scabrous, sometimes sparsely minutely stipitate-glandular, grading into phyllaries.

campanulate, 5–10 mm.

cylindro-campanulate, 6–7.6 mm.

15–40;

corollas violet, laminae 9–15 × 1–2 mm.

15–30;

corollas purplish-blue to lavender, laminae 7–13 × 0.8–2 mm.

30-80(–100);

corollas yellow, sometimes becoming reddish, 4.5–6 mm, lobes triangular, 0.5–1 mm.

19-25;

corollas cream to pale yellow turning reddish purple, sometimes also brownish, 5.2–6 mm, tubes slightly shorter than funnelform throats, lobes lanceolate to triangular, 0.8–1.2 mm.

in 3–5 series, narrowly oblong or linear (outer) to linear (inner), unequal, bases indurate, margins entire, green zones elliptic to lanceolate, apices usually acute, sometimes obtuse, faces glabrous or ± puberulent.

in 4–5 series (appressed), oblong or oblanceolate (outer) to linear-oblanceolate (innermost), unequal, bases indurate, margins hyaline, scarious, erose, ciliate or ciliolate, and/or sometimes stipitate-glandular, often reddish distally, green zones elliptic (outer) to lanceolate, apices erect, acute to acuminate, mucronulate to apiculate (inner), often tinged red-purplish, faces glabrous or glabrate.

in corymbiform to paniculiform arrays, branches usually few.

(4–400) in wide to narrow, paniculiform arrays, branches ascending to widely spreading (well-developed), densely small-leaved.

brown, cylindric to obovoid, not compressed, 2.5–3.5 mm, ± 4-nerved, faces hairy;

pappi whitish, 5–7 mm.

tan, obovoid-fusiform, slightly compressed, 1.9–2.3 mm, 4–5-nerved (golden bronze), faces sparsely strigillose to glabrescent;

pappi sordid, 5–6.2 mm.