1 Flowers 2 or more per leaf axil; berries with spherical seed-like bodies intermixed with the flattened, reniform seeds; [of the Gulf Coastal Plain]

1 Flowers 1 per leaf axil; berries with flattened, reniform seeds only; [collectively widespread].

  2 Berry 20-40 mm in diameter, green or yellow-green when ripe (tomatillo); anther strongly coiled after dehiscence, blue; corolla throat with bluish tinge; [cultivated and weakly naturalized near gardens]

  2 Berry to 20 mm in diameter, orange, yellow, or green when ripe; anther not coiled after dehiscence, yellow, blue, or purple; corolla throat purple, brown, green, or ochre; [collectively widespread].

    3 Plants pubescent with 2-3 branched or dendroid-stelliform hair (in some species with simple hair as well), these in some taxa abundantly covering the leaves, or if leaves glabrous, the stellate hair visible on the tips and margin of the sepal; plants perennial, from deeply buried rhizome; [section Stellatae]

      4 Hair 2-3 branched

      4 Hair dendroid-stelliform.

        5 Leaves linear, 10-20× as long as wide, glabrous (except for leaf margin and calyx); plants erect; [of s. FL and FL Panhandle westward to s. LA]

          6 Leaves sessile, blade linear-lanceolate, 0.2-0.8 (11) cm wide; (s. FL and FL peninsula westward to LA)

          6 Leaves sessile or short-petiolate, blade narrowly spathulate to linear-lanceolate, 0.3-1.5 (-2) cm wide

        5 Leaves ovate, elliptic, obovate or spatulate (varying in width but not narrowly linear-lanceolate), 2-10× as long as wide, stellate pubescent, especially on the young growth, flowering calyces, and pedicel (or glabrous); [of se. VA south to s. FL, west to s. MS].

             7 Undersurfaces of mid-stem and upper leaves densely white tomentose, the vestiture mostly obscuring the surface of the blade

             7 Undersurfaces of mid-stem and upper leaves mostly moderately to sparsely pubescent, the vestiture not usually obscuring the surface of the blade.

               8 Anther < 1× as long as the mature filament; [s. MS east to s. FL and north to e. VA].

                 9 Leaves sparsely to densely dendritic-pubescent; narrowly spathulate to narrowly ovate-lanceolate

                 9 Leaves dendritic-pubescent; broadly elliptic to ovate to broadly ovate

               8 Anther > 1.5× as long as the mature filament; [native west of the Mississippi River (AR, LA, OK, TX, etc.), and rarely introduced eastwards, as in SC, TN, and AL].

                   10 Leaf margin entire; corolla limb not reflexed when fully open; [coastal dune and coastal prairie of TX, w. LA, and n. Mexico]

                   10 Leaf margin undulate, sinuate, or dentate; corolla limb reflexed when fully open; [widespread, MO, KS, AR, OK, LA, TX, rarely eastward as introductions in TN, SC, and AL].

                     11 Vestiture of stems and leaves only of branched hair < 1 mm long; fruiting calyx 1-2 cm in diameter

                     11 Vestiture of stems and leaves of branched hair < 1 mm long and glandular hair 2-4 mm long; fruiting calyx 2.5-3.5 cm in diameter

    3 Plants glabrous, or pubescent with simple hair only (stellate or branched hair absent or very rare); plants annual or perennial.

                       12 Leaves glabrous or essentially so.

                          13 Perennials from rhizome, frequently with remnant of last year's stem attached to crown; corolla with 5 dark maculations in the throat.

                            14 Hair on the pedicel and young stems retrorse or retrorse-spreading; fruiting calyx 5-angled, indented at base

                            14 Hair on the pedicel and young stems antrorse; fruiting calyx subterete, with 10 rib, not indented at base

                              15 Leaves lanceolate to lance-linear, narrower than the following, many ca. 3.5× as long as wide

                              15 Leaves lanceolate to broadly lanceolate to ovate, generally broader than above, about 2.5× as long as wide, or broader.

                                16 Principal leaves lanceolate to broadly lanceolate, usually single-stemmed, erect; [widespread in e. US]

                                16 Principal leaves ovate; plants usually several-branched from base, stems spreading; [s. TX]

                          13 Annuals from taproot; corolla with or without 5 dark maculations in the throat.

                                  17 Upper part of the stem with long, spreading hair; corolla with 5 dark maculations in the throat; [section Epeteiorhiza].

                                    18 Leaf margin strongly dentate with 7-10 (or more) teeth per side; fruiting pedicel 12 mm or more long; mature fruiting calyx 2.5-4 cm (or more) long, the lobe long-acuminate to attenuate; corolla pubescent internally

                                    18 Leaf margin entire, or dentate with 1-8 teeth per side; fruiting pedicel < 10 mm long; mature fruiting calyx 2.5 cm or less long, the lobe triangular-acuminate; corolla glabrous internally

                                  17 Upper part of the stem glabrous or glabrate (when young, sometimes with minute, deflexed hair in lines); corolla with or without 5 dark maculations in the throat.

                                       19 Corolla 7-15 mm long, yellow and with 5 dark maculations in the throat; anther 2.5-4 mm long; berry to 40 mm in diameter

                                       19 Corolla 4-10 mm long entirely yellow, without 5 dark maculations in the throat; anther 1-2.3 mm long; berry 8-11 mm in diameter.

                                         20 Corolla white to cream, widely flaring and very flat, with greenish-tinged, densely hairy region in 5 spots towards the base of the inner surface; anther 2.5-3.0 mm long; fruiting pedicel 2.5-6.0 cm long

                                         20 Corolla yellow, bell-, or saucer-shaped, sometimes suffused with purple within, but lacking densely hairy spots; anther 1.5-2.5 mm long; fruiting pedicel 1.5-4.0 cm long

                       12 Leaves variously pubescent, the hair copious and villous to sparse and appressed.

                                           21 Flowering calyces < 6 mm long; annuals from taproot; [section Epeteiorhiza].

                                             22 Corolla yellow, unspotted or slightly dark-tinged

                                             22 Corolla yellow with dark spots.

                                               23 Stems, young growth, and major veins of the leaves covered with villous pubescence intermixed with sessile gland; leaves gray-green, prominently and coarsely dentate to the base, with well-defined reticulate venation, especially visible on the lower surface, frequently drying orange or with orange spots; anther yellow, perhaps with a bluish tinge; body of mature calyx about as long as broad, abruptly acuminate at apex; berry tawny orange when mature

                                               23 Stems, young growth, and major veins of leaves with fine, non-villous pubescence; leaves green, obscurely dentate, often in the upper half only, or entire, without well-defined reticulate venation, drying green or brownish; anther blue or violet; body of mature calyx longer than broad, long-acuminate at the apex; berry green when mature

                                           21 Flowering calyces > 6 mm long; perennials from rhizome.

                                                 24 Pedicel 4-8(-13) mm in flower, 5-15 mm in fruit; [western, e. TX and west, not in LA]

                                                 24 Pedicel (8-) 9-17 (-45) mm in flower, 15-30 (-35) mm in fruit.

                                                    25 Plants glabrous or villous, hair antrorse and to 1 mm, sometimes also with hair 1-2 mm long, often with slender, shallow rhizome

                                                    25 Plants densely villous and/or viscid, hair divergent and 1-2 mm, often also with shorter hair; upper leaf surfaces punctate to densely viscid-pubescent; rhizome stout and deeply buried (but these sometimes not collected).

                                                      26 Pubescence viscid, generally composed of glandular trichome mixed with fine, short hair and long, multicellular ones; leaf blade broadly ovate to suborbicular, the base rounded, truncate, or cordate (occasionally widely cuneate).

                                                        27 Longer hair mostly 0.2-0.5 mm, some up to 1.5 (2) mm long, mature fruiting calyx 5-7 cm long, seeds 3-4 mm long; upper leaf surfaces punctate to sparsely glandular-pubescent; leaves triangular-ovate to deltoid; [restricted to sands of c. TX, sw. AR, and w. LA]

                                                      26 Pubescence seldom if at all glandular-viscid, composed of simple trichome of varying lengths, from dense, spreading, and long-villous to sparse, strigose and appressed; leaf blade narrowly ovate to broadly lanceolate, the base cuneate (rarely truncate).

                                                          28 Pedicel and flowering calyces pubescent with minute, appressed, antrorse hair; hair on the calyx primarily confined to 10 narrow longitudinal strips consisting of simple, appressed hair < 0.5 mm long.

                                                            29 Leaves lanceolate to lance-linear, narrower than the following, many ca. 3.5× as long as wide

                                                            29 Leaves lanceolate to broadly lanceolate to ovate, generally broader than above, about 2.5× as long as wide, or broader.

                                                              30 Principal leaves lanceolate to broadly lanceolate, usually single-stemmed, erect; [widespread in e. US]

                                                              30 Principal leaves ovate; plants usually several-branched from base, stems spreading; [s. TX]

                                                          28 Plants moderately to densely pubescent with divergent hair 1-1.5 mm long, and antrorse or retrorse hair to 0.5 mm long; pedicel and flowering calyces densely pubescent with divergent and appressed hair mixed (or only with appressed retrorse hair); hair on the calyx scattered more or less evenly over the surface, not confined to 10 longitudinal strips

                                                                 31 Plants erect; leaf margin coarsely to shallowly dentate or entire; hair divergent and retrorse (reflexed or retrorse hair often mixed with spreading hair

                                                                 31 Plants decumbent; leaf margin entire or undulate; hair divergent and antrorse.

                                                                   32 Leaf blade oblanceolate; flowering calyces and pedicel not hispid; [plants of e. Coastal Plain (sandhill of NC, SC, GA)]

                                                                   32 Leaf blade elliptic-ovate; flowering calyces and pedicel hispid with stiff spreading hair; [plants of Great Plains]