Click the number at the start of a key lead to highlight both that lead and its corresponding lead. Click again to show only the two highlighted leads. Click a third time to return to the full key with the selected leads still highlighted.

Key to Thelesperma

Copy permalink to share

1 Disc corolla lobes shorter or equal in length to the throat; pappi lacking or rarely of 2 awns, 0.1-0.3 (-0.5) mm long
1 Disc corolla lobes longer than the throat; pappi or 2 awns or rarely lacking, (0.5-) 1-3 mm long.
  2 Perennials; ray florets 0, or 8; ray blades 4-8 (-12) mm long; cypselas (4-) 5-8 mm long.
    3 Plants 10-30 (-50) cm tall; ray florets 8, rarely 0; disc corollas red-brown
    3 Plants (20-) 30-80+ cm tall; ray florets 0; disc corollas yellow
  2 Annuals; ray florets 8; ray blades 10-20+ mm long; cypselas 3.5-5.5+ mm long.
      4 Disc corollas red-brown to purplish; ray blades entirely or proximally red-brown to purplish or with a red brown spot near the base.
        5 Calyculus of bractlets, 5-6 (-9), linear to narrowly triangular, with margins hispido-ciliate; cypselas 3.5-4 mm long
        5 Calyculus of bractlets, 6-7+, narrowly triangular, with margins not ciliate; cypselas 5-5.5+ mm long
      4 Disc corollas yellow or red-brown; ray blades yellow to golden or rarely suffused with red-brown.
          6 Plants 30-70 (-120+) cm tall; cauline leaves ± scattered over lower 9/10 of plant, internodes 35-100+ mm long; disc corollas yellow, often with brown nerves
          6 Plants 10-70+ cm tall; cauline leaves crowded to ± scattered over lower 1/2-3/4+ of plant, internodes mostly 10-35 (-50+) mm long; disc corollas red-brown or yellow with red-brown nerves.
             7 Plants 25-70+ cm tall; rays golden yellow; outer phyllaries mainly > 1/2 as long as the inner phyllaries
             7 Plants 20-30 (-40) cm tall; rays medium yellow; outer phyllaries mainly ca. 1/2 as long as the inner phyllaries