Flora of North America species comparison

horizontal, brownish, short, slender to stout, praemorse, not brittle.

short, thick.

1–3, round in cross section, 2.3–3.4+ dm, ± slender, smooth to scabrous below bracts.

1–2, decumbent, usually by an S-shaped curvature, round in cross section, 0.5–2 dm, somewhat stout, slightly expanded toward bracts, densely puberulent, especially just below bracts and on bases of main bract veins beneath.

held well above ground, sessile;

blade green to bluish green, weakly mottled, rarely unmottled, mottling becoming obscure with age, adaxial surface covered with numerous stomata easily visible under a lens, occasionally visible as tiny white dots to the naked eye, narrowly to broadly elliptic, 8–20.5 × 5–8 cm, not glossy, apex blunt to rounded-acute.

appearing early in season, in good condition for only a few weeks after anthesis, dying back to semipersistent bases early, resting on ground surface, sessile;

blade strongly mottled in shades of green and bronze and with silvery overlay, mottling becoming obscure with age, ovate to suborbicular, 4–12 × 3.3–7 cm, apex acute to rounded.

erect, odor of decayed fruit;

sepals displayed above bracts, widely spreading, distal 1/2 often weakly declined, green, lanceolate-acute, 28–60 × 7–9 mm, margins entire, apex acute;

petals long-lasting, erect to widely spreading, ± connivent, ± concealing stamens and ovary, green, yellowish green, yellow, or variously purple streaked throughout, especially basally (rarely all purplish green), not spirally twisted, narrowly spatulate to linear-spatulate, 3.5–6.8 × 0.5–1.5 cm, widest above middle, thick-textured, base narrowed and thickened, ± forming claw, margins entire, apex obtuse, lacking nipple;

stamens relatively straight-erect to slightly incurved, 15–25 mm;

filaments brown-olive, 3–5.5 mm, dilated basally;

anthers erect, straight, olive-brown or purplish, 8–21 mm, ± slender, dehiscence introrse-latrorse;

connectives olive, straight, very slightly (± 0.5 mm) extended beyond sacs;

ovary greenish basally, olive-purplish distally, ellipsoid to ovoid, deeply angled, 5–12 mm;

stigmas spreading-erect, recurved, distinct, sessile, olive or purplish, subulate, 5–10 mm, somewhat fleshy.

erect, odor unreported;

sepals divergent, green- or maroon-streaked, lanceolate-ovate, 22–48 × 9–14 mm, margins entire, flat, apex acute;

petals long-lasting, rigidly erect, ± connivent, ± concealing stamens and ovary, dark maroon-purple when fresh, fading especially distally to dull reddish brown, greenish brown, or with creamy yellow tones, very rarely pale lemon yellow forms occur, twisted (but not spiraled), linear-lanceolate or oblanceolate, 4–8+ × 0.7–1 cm, thick-textured, margins entire, apex acute;

stamens erect, straight, dark purple, 10–25 mm;

filaments dark purple, 2–5 mm;

anthers straight, dark purple, 9–20 mm, dehiscence extrorse;

connectives broad, extending to 3.5–4 mm beyond anther sacs;

ovary dark purple, oval, 6-angled, 5–10 mm;

stigmas erect, divergent-recurved, distinct, sessile, pink or white, subulate, 4.5–8 mm.

greenish white, odorless, ovoid, angled, 1–1.5 cm, somewhat pulpy, not juicy.

baccate, dark purple, broadly ovoid to subglobose, crownlike, strongly ridged, 1–1.5 × 1 cm, pulpy but not juicy, present and enlarging on naked scapes until early autumn.

= 10.

= 10.