Flora of North America species comparison

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

1–5+, ascending to erect (often stout, light to dark brown), sparsely to densely scabroso-hirsute to cinereo-puberulent, or villous distally.

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.

(light to dark green) thick and often stiff (margins flat, sometimes undulate), scabrous;

basal early deciduous, subpetiolate (petioles winged, sheathing), blades spatulate to obovate, 30–70 × 10–30 mm, bases cuneate, margins entire to ± serrulate, scabrous, apices acute to rounded, faces scabroso-hirsute;

proximal cauline sessile, blades usually ovate to lanceolate, rarely spatulate, (20–)30–70(–100) × 10–30(–40) mm, reduced distally, bases strongly cordate-clasping to auriculate-amplexicaul (broadened below constriction), apices acute, faces (grayish green) rugulose, hairy (abaxial inconspicuously veined, adaxial reticulately veined, hairier along veins);

distal sessile, blades narrowly to broadly ovate, 15–35 × 4–13 mm, much reduced on branches, bases strongly cordate-clasping to auriculate-amplexicaul, apices usually acute, sometimes obtuse, mucronate to white-spinulose, faces scabrous, sometimes sparsely to moderately stipitate-glandular.

sparsely hairy, bracts 0–3+.

stiffly ascending, slender, 2–10(–15) cm, scabroso-hirsute to cinereo-puberulent, bracts appressed to spreading, linear, 1–5 mm, grading into phyllaries.

campanulate, 5–10 mm.

campanulate, 5.5–12 mm.

15–40;

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

12–24+;

corollas light lavender-violet to mauve, rarely white to pinkish, laminae 10–18(–20) × 1–3 mm.

30-80(–100);

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

20–50;

corollas yellow, cream, or white turning purple, (4.5–)5.5–7.5 mm, tubes shorter than narrowly funnelform throats, lobes triangular, 0.5–1 mm (glabrous or lobes thinly puberulent).

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 4–7(–8) series, appressed or often slightly recurved-spreading or squarrose, ovate-lanceolate to linear, strongly unequal, bases (tan) ± indurate in proximal 1/3–1/2, margins hyaline, erose, distally scabroso-ciliolate to ciliolate, green zones diamond-shaped, in distal 1/5–1/3, apices (outer) obtuse to acute, appressed to squarrose, (inner) acuminate, often purplish red, faces strigillose or cinereo-puberulent abaxially and near tip adaxially, sometimes moderately stipitate-glandular distally.

in corymbiform to paniculiform arrays, branches usually few.

in paniculiform arrays, branches divaricate (heads 1–5+ per branch), terminal shoot often not flowering.

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

pappi whitish, 5–7 mm.

dull purple or brown, obovoid to oblong-obovoid, not compressed, 2–3.5 mm, 7–10-nerved (faint), faces sericeous or strigillose;

pappi tawny, sometimes rose-tinged, 4.5–6.5 mm.