Flora of North America species comparison

1–5+, erect (straight to slightly flexuous, brittle, sometimes stout), proximally glabrous or glabrate, distally sparsely pilose.

1–5+, erect (straight, stout to slender, often reddish), glabrous and hairy in lines distally or sometimes wholly strigoso-pilose (var. villicaule).

thin, margins usually shallowly, sometimes deeply serrate, rarely entire (distal), (piloso- to strigoso-)ciliate to scabrous (distal), apices mucronate, abaxial faces moderately pilose, ± densely so on midveins, adaxial glabrate to sparsely pilose or scabrous;

basal usually withering by flowering, sometimes persistent, long-petiolate (5–15 cm, petioles not or narrowly winged, sheathing), blades ovate to lance-ovate or lanceolate, 25–120 × 15–50 mm, bases usually shallowly, sometimes deeply, cordate to truncate or rounded, apices acute, sometimes rounded;

proximal cauline sometimes deciduous at flowering, winged-petiolate (petioles distally usually broader-winged, clasping), blades ovate to lanceolate, 50–120 × 20–50 mm, gradually reduced distally, bases usually truncate or rounded to attenuate, sometimes cordate, apices usually acute or acuminate, sometimes nearly caudate;

distal ± shortly winged-petiolate or sessile, blades lance-ovate or lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, 10–100 × 1–25 mm, reduced distally, bases attenuate to cuneate, margins entire to subentire, scabrous, apices acuminate to subcaudate.

thick, firm, ± fleshy, margins scabrous, apices mucronate, faces glabrous, abaxial midveins sometimes villosulous (var. villicaule);

basal withering by flowering, petiolate (petioles winged, bases sheathing), blades ovate to ovate-lanceolate or lanceolate, 17–60+ × 6–11+ mm, bases attenuate to cuneate, apices obtuse;

proximal cauline withering by flowering, sessile or widely winged-petiolate (petioles clasping), blades lance-ovate or -obovate to elliptic to linear-lanceolate, 40–200 × 4–40 mm, bases cuneate or sometimes slightly attenuate, sometimes rounded or slightly auriculate, slightly clasping, apices acute to acuminate;

distal sessile, blades lance-ovate to linear-lanceolate, 13–62 × 3–15 mm, progressively reduced distally, bases cuneate or ± rounded, sometimes slightly auriculate, ± clasping, margins sparsely serrulate or entire.

0.3–2 cm, sparsely pilosulous to glabrate, bracts many, ascending, linear to subulate, 2–4 mm, grading into phyllaries.

4–41 mm, glabrous or moderately pilose, bracts 1–3, lanceolate or ovate to linear-oblanceolate, subtending ones sometimes exceeding involucres, sometimes grading into phyllaries.

cylindric, (4–)4.5–6(–7) mm.

campanulate, 6–9 mm.

8–15(–20);

corollas mostly white to pale pink or lilac or light blue, laminae 4.5–8(–10) × 0.8–1.5 mm.

15–35;

corollas usually blue-violet or purple, rarely pink or white, laminae (6–)10–19 × 0.9–2.1 mm.

(8–)10–15(–20);

corollas whitish to cream becoming pink, (3.5–)4–5 mm, tubes shorter than funnelform throats (with hairs), lobes lanceolate, 0.4–0.7 mm.

28–68;

corollas yellow becoming reddish brown to purple, 4–7.5 mm, tubes shorter than funnelform-campanulate throats, lobes lanceolate, 1–1.5 mm.

in 4–6 series, appressed or recurved-spreading, subulate (outer) to linear-lanceolate (inner), unequal, bases indurate 1/3–1/2+, margins scarious, hyaline, erose, sparsely ciliolate (mostly distally), green zones linear-lanceolate (outer) to linear (inner), apices long-acuminate to caudate, recurved, hyaline-mucronate to aristate, tips often purple, faces glabrous.

in 3–4 series, oblong-oblanceolate or -spatulate (outer) or oblong-lanceolate to linear-lanceolate or linear (inner), ± unequal to subequal, bases indurate 1/5–1/3, margins hyaline, scarious, erose and sparsely ciliolate distally, green zones lanceolate, sometimes foliaceous, apices spreading to ± squarrose, usually acute to obtuse or ± long-acuminate, mucronulate, faces glabrous.

(crowded) in dense, elongate, paniculiform arrays, branches stiffly ascending to erect (sometimes arched when long, peduncles then often secund), usually racemiform, sometimes paniculiform, leafy.

in open to dense, paniculiform arrays, branches ± divaricate to ascending, leafy with remote, small, gradually reduced branch leaves.

tan to brown or dull purple (nerves stramineous), obovoid, ± compressed, 1.8–2.5 mm, 4–6-nerved, faces glabrous or glabrate or very sparsely strigillose;

pappi white or rose-tinged, 3–4 mm.

tan to brown, obovoid, compressed, 2–4 mm, 4–6-nerved, faces sparsely strigose to glabrate;

pappi sordid to yellowish, 4–6 mm.

= 16.