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Key to Hieracium

Asteraceae

Hieracium

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1 Cypselas 1-2.5 mm long; pappus of 25-40+ white to sordid bristles, in 1 series; plants stoloniferous (cespitose in a few species); corollas yellow or orange
1 Cypselas (2-) 2.5-7 mm long; pappus of (30-) 40-80 white, tan, or sordid bristles, in 1-2+ series; plants cespitose; corollas yellow.
  2 Leaves primarily cauline, the largest leaves definitely on the stem, basal leaves usually absent.
    3 Florets 8-20 (-30) per head; leaves nearly glabrous, or with a few long hairs on the lower surface; upper stem glabrous
    3 Florets 30-110 per head; leaves setose, with long hairs on the upper and lower surfaces; upper stem stipitate-glandular, stellate-pubescent, or glabrous.
      4 Leaves with entire margins, rounded to obtuse at the tip; [widespread in our area]
      4 Leaves with toothed to laciniate margins, acute to obtuse at the tip
        5 Leaves 2-4× as long as wide; [exotic, mainly in disturbed situations]
        5 Leaves (3-) 5-10 (-15)× as long as wide; [disjunct at high elevations in WV]
  2 Leaves primarily basal, the largest leaves basal, leaves in some species extending onto the lower portion of the stem.
          6 Leaves purple-veined (when fresh).
             7 Lower stem strongly pilose; leaves weakly purple-veined
             7 Lower stem glabrous or nearly so; leaves strongly purple-veined
          6 Leaves not purple-veined.
                 9 Cypselas truncate, broadest at the tip; flowers 40-100 per head
                 9 Cypselas narrowed to the tip; flowers 20-40 per head
                   10 Hairs of the lower stem 1-4 mm long; inflorescence 2-4× as long as wide; [widespread in our area]
                   10 Hairs of the lower stem 6-15 mm long; inflorescence 4-7× as long as wide; [of KY and TN westward]
                       12 Leaf bases of basal leaf blades cuneate; reproductive stems with 2-10 leaves.
                          13 Cypselas 2-3.5 mm long, truncate, broadest at the tip or along the length; flowers 40-100 per head
                          13 Cypselas 2.2-5 mm long, at least the longer achenes narrowed to the tip; flowers 15-40 per head.
                            14 Stem with several well-developed leaves slightly smaller than the basal leaves; inflorescence corymbiform or tending toward paniculate.
                              15 Involucre mostly 6-9 mm high; inflorescence generally elongate and cylindric (appearing corymbiform in depauperate individuals); achenes 2.5-4 mm long; corollas 8-9 mm long
                            14 Stem leafless, or with only a few leaves distinctly smaller than the basal leaves; inflorescence strongly corymbiform.
                                  17 Involucral setae not gland-tipped (but with shorter gland-tipped hairs); [of the Mountains (and Piedmont?) of VA]
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Key to Asteraceae, Key E: herbaceous composites with leaves alternate or basal,
liguliflorous heads (composed of ligulate florets), and sap usually milky

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1 Cypselae (at least of the inner florets of the head) beaked, the beak usually > ½ the length of the cypselae body.
  2 Heads solitary and terminal at the end of a stem unbranched to its base.
    3 Flower color pink to purple or white
    3 Flower color yellow to yellowish-white.
      4 Leaves basal and cauline, grasslike (untoothed and unlobed); stem leafy
      4 Leaves basal only, variously toothed to pinnately lobed; stem scapiform (leafless).
(c) Fleming, Gary P.
        5 Pappus of bristles, these aggregated at the tip of the elongate, somewhat differentiated achene beak (thus the cypsela forming an umbrella-like structure).
(c) Zharkikh, Andrey - CC-BY-NC, permission granted to NCBG
(c) Jauch, Wolfgang - CC-BY
        5 Pappus either of outer scales and inner bristles or entirely of aristate scales, these borne atop slender filiform achenes (the achenes and pappus clearly separate and without a differentiated beak between).
(c) Jauch, Wolfgang - CC-BY
          6 Pappus of outer scales and inner plumose bristles; leaves oblanceolate to oblong; plants annual or perennial
(c) Zharkikh, Andrey - CC-BY-NC, permission granted to NCBG
          6 Pappus of aristate scales; leaves linear to narrowly lanceolate; plants annual
  2 Heads several per stem, in various corymbiform, umbelliform, spiciform, or paniculiform arrays (rarely solitary and terminal in the smallest and most depauperate individuals in a population.
                 9 Plants taprooted annuals or biennials, without rhizomes
                 9 Plants rhizomatous perennials, the rhizomes deeply rooted in the substrate
                   10 Pappus of plumose bristles, at least the inner series; plant an annual or biennial.
                   10 Pappus of simple capillary bristles; plant an annual, biennial, or perennial.
(c) Wright, Janet - CC-BY-NC, permission granted to NCBG
© Scott Ward
                       12 Beak of the cypsela with a ring of soft white reflexed hairs at the summit (just below the pappus); phyllary apices usually with keel-like flap
                       12 Beak of the cypsela lacking a ring of hairs as described; phyllary apices lacking keel (phyllary bases can be keeled in Crepis)
                          13 Pappus either of 40-50 (or more) smooth bristles or of 20-30 barbellulate bristles; plant a perennial.
1 Cypselae beakless, the apex typically rounded or truncate (sometimes tapered but lacking a distinct beak and conspicuously < ½ the length of cypselae body).
                              15 Leaves basally disposed (stem leaves few or none, if present generally smaller in size than the basal leaves, which are persistent into flowering and fruiting); corollas yellow, orange, or red.
                                  17 Heads solitary or 2-3; pappus absent, the cypselae never bearing scales or bristles; cypselae with 8-10 ribs (3-5 prominent); [waif, ne. US]
                                  17 Heads solitary; pappus present (occasionally absent in Krigia); cypselae with 10-20 ribs; [widespread natives]
                                    18 Pappus of 40-80 smooth to barbellulate bristles and sometimes a few subulate to setiform scales (but pappus never absent); [Great Plains, midwest US]
                                             22 Flowers usually yellow to orange; [widespread, including TX; tribe Cichorieae].
                                               23 Involucre 3-5 mm high; achenes 1.5-2.5 mm long; pappus bristles basally connate (unified basally into a ring-like structure at the junction of achene summit), 2.5-3.5 mm long
                              15 Leaves basal and cauline (plant often beginning with a basal rosette, but by flowering bearing well-developed stem leaves about as large as the basal leaves, the basal rosette often withering prior to flowering and fruiting); corollas yellow, orange, red, blue, pink, white, or lavender.
                                                          28 Cypselae 1.2-2.8 mm long; heads borne single at the ends of scapiform stems that are unbranched (rarely few-branched near the base); plants to 7 dm tall
                                                                   32 Leaves linear, entire, < 3 mm wide, or reduced to scales; cypselae 11-14 mm long; [of the Coastal Plain of GA and se. AL south to s. FL]
                                                                   32 Leaves broader, of various shapes, usually hastate, irregularly lobed, and/or serrate; cypselae 3.5-10 mm long; [collectively widespread in our area, south to n. FL]