What’s a dichotomous key?
Help
Iris
See list of 11 species in this genusOlder literature sometimes referred to the sepals as “falls” and the petals as “standards”. These are superfluous terms and are abandoned here. Recent phylogenetic analysis showed that Belamcanda is nested within Iris (Wilson 2004). Two specimens have been seen that were determined as Iris prismatica ×I. versicolor—9 Jul 1923, Cheever & Knowlton s.n. ( NEBC!) was I. versicolor and Sanford 10009 ( NEBC!) is doubtfully as determined. Reference: Henderson (2002).
-
1a. Styles narrow, not petaloid, without crests; anthers visible, not appressed to style branches; seeds black, fully exposed at maturity
-
1b. Styles broad, petaloid, with paired crests at the apex; anthers concealed, appressed to abaxial surface of style branches; seeds ultimately tan to brown, contained within the capsule
-
2a. Plants actually or nearly acaulescent at anthesis, the stems up to 4.5 cm tall
-
3a. Sepals with a line of multicellular hairs on the midrib; stems absent or up to 1 cm tall; capsules rounded-triangular in cross-section
-
3b. Sepals with 3, parallel, toothed ridges; stems 2.5–4.5 cm tall; capsules sharply triangular in cross-section
-
-
2b. Plants caulescent, the stems (5–) 10–120 cm tall
-
4a. Sepals ornamented with toothed ridges; capsule 6-ribbed
-
4b. Sepals without ridges or crests, though sometimes pubescent; capsule 3-ribbed or 3-edged
-
5a. Sepals with a line of multicellular hairs on the midrib; seeds oval in outline
-
5b. Sepals glabrous or with a small patch of fine, unicellular hairs near the base in I. versicolor; seeds D-shaped to pyriform in outline ( ± circular in I. ensata)
-
6a. Perianth yellow; pedicels of fruits arching to sometimes pendulous [Fig. 135]
-
6b. Perianth blue to violet (rarely white); pedicels of fruits erect
-
7a. Adnate floral tube 2–3 mm tall; branches of rhizomes unlike the primary rhizome, bearing scale-like leaves along its length [Fig. 134], expanding at apex to produce green leaves; capsules sharply triangular in cross-section; seeds in 1 row in each locule of capsule
-
7b. Adnate floral tube 5–100 mm tall; branches of rhizome similar to the primary rhizome in size and texture; capsules rounded-triangular to terete in cross-section; seeds in 2 rows in each locule of the capsule
-
8a. Petals inconspicuous, 1–2 cm long, tipped by a bristle, strongly involute in the basal portion, the margins often nearly or fully touching and ± forming a tube; seeds compressed-pyriform in outline [Fig. 133]
-
8b. Petals conspicuous, 2–5.5 cm long, without an apical brisle [Fig. 136], weakly involute in the basal portion and merely forming a shallow trough; seeds D-shaped or ± circular in outline [Fig. 137]
-
9a. Flowers 8–15 cm wide in life; hypanthium ca. 2 mm long; capsules terete or nearly so in cross-section with 6 longitudinal ridges; seeds ± circular in outline
-
9b. Flowers mostly 6–8 cm wide in life; hypanthium 4–10 mm long; capsules rounded-triangular in cross-section, lacking longitudinal ridges; seeds D-shaped in outline
-
10a. Leaf blades 4–6 mm wide; stems hollow; petals 12–20 mm wide
-
10b. Leaf blades 10–30 mm wide; stems solid; petals 8–12 mm wide
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Show photos of:
Each photo represents one species in this genus.