1.

+

Florets milky – white to dull – white.

2

-

Florets yellow, purple, reddish-purple, rosy pink or pinkish violet.

9

2.

+

Involucre 5-6 mm long. Capitula with ca 3-florets. Corolla limb three times shorter than corolla tube.

 37. C. stocksii

-

Involucre > 15 mm long. Capitula with 15 or more florets. Corolla limb longer, equaling or slightly shorter than the tube.

 3

3.

+

Leaves rigidly leathery.

4

-

Leaves not rigidly leathery (softly herbaceous).

6

4.

+

Corolla 1.3 – 1.5 cm long. Anther tube pubescent. Cypselas scrobi-culate, transversely black spotted.

2. C. alepideae

-

Corolla 1.8 – 2.5 cm long. Anther tube glabrous. Cypselas not scrobiculate, either unspotted or irregularly spotted.

 5

5.

+

Capitula solitary, terminal, with ca 60 florets. Phyllaries ca 90.

17. C. gedrosiaca

-

Capitula borne on terminal and lateral shoots in ± racemes, with > 90-florets. Phyllaries ca 70.

34. C. scariosa

6.

+

Capitula glomerated on short branches or borne in dense or lax racemes.

 7

-

Capitula solitary terminal.

8

7.

+

Rachis not winged. Capitula with 25-30-florets. Cypselas 6-7 mm long.

 33. C. racemosa

-

Rachis winged. Capitula with ca 40 florets. Cypselas ca 5 mm long.

29. C. pinetecola

8.

+

Capitula with 60-80 florets, Cypselas brown, ca 6.5 mm long and ca 2.5 mm wide, striate to ribbed.

36. C. scheibeana

-

Capitula with 35-60 florets, Cypselas shiny grey, ca 35 mm long and ca 1.5 mm wide, smooth and ribless.

25. C. microcarpa

9.

+

Florets yellow or pale yellow.

10

-

Florets purple, reddish – purple, rosy violet, pink.

21

10.

+

Plants ca 8 cm tall, sometimes prostrate. Capitula ca 10 cm in diameter, florets 180 or more. Corolla pale yellow, fading to purplish pale on drying.

38. C. subscaposa

-

Plants 10-80 cm tall. Capitula 0.5-8 cm in diameter, florets < 180. Corolla yellow, changing to pinkish-purple on drying.

11

11.

+

Capitula with 100-150 florets. Corolla ca 2 cm long with hairy limb. Anther tube hairy.

 1. C. afghanica

-

Capitula with < 100 florets. Corolla < 2 cm long with glabrous limb. Anther tube glabrous.

12

12.

+

Capitula small, < 1 cm in diameter (3-8 mm). Florets 3-10 per capitulum.

 13

-

Capitula large, 1-3 cm in diameter. Florets 18-50 per capitulum.

17

13.

+

Plants tufted, dwarf, 10-25 cm tall. Corolla ca 7 mm long. Capitula 3-4 mm broad.

20. C. heterophylla

-

Plants neither tufted nor dwarf, 30-100 cm tall. Corolla 8-12 mm long. Capitula 5-10 mm broad.

14

14.

+

Leaves bipinnate-tripinnate or tripinnatifid. Phyllaries ca 50. Cypselas 1.5-2.5 mm long.

8. C. bipinnata

-

Leaves sinuately or variously lobed or pinnatipartite or pinnatisect but not bipinnate or tripinnate. Phyllaries few, 14-30. Cypselas 4-6 mm long.

15

15.

+

Capitula 15-20 in each terminal glomerule. Florets 5 per capitulum. Limb almost 5 times longer than the corolla tube.

14. C. congesta

-

Capitula < 15 in each terminal and axillary glomerule. Florets 8-30 per capitulum. Limb either almost equal to the corolla tube or if longer than not 5 times the tube.

16

16.

+

Leaves decurrent and adnate up to 1/3 of internode, spines of the leaves (4-) 5-7 mm long. Involucre infundibuli-form. Phyllaries with erect spines.

 15. C. decurrens

-

Leaves not decurrent, spines of the leaves 1-2 mm long. Involucre cylindrical with recurved phyllaries.

9. C. turkmenorum

17.

+

Annual, prostrate herbs. Phyllaries espinose. Corolla 7-8 mm long.

30. C. prolifera

-

Biennual or perennial erect herbs. Phyllaries spinose. Corolla 10-18 mm long.

18

18.

+

Leaves without spines on margin but lobules sharply mucronate at apices. Corolla ca 10 mm long. Phyllaries 70-80.

5. C. aptera

-

Leaves with spines on margin and apices. Corolla 15-18 mm long. Phyllaries upto 60.

19

19.

+

Leaves glandular - papillose. Capitula in glomerules. Involucre campanulate. Phyllaries densely glandular papillose.

43. C. chlorothyrsa

-

Leaves eglandular. Capitula solitary. Involucre glandular or turbinate. Phyllaries eglandular.

20

20.

+

Plants upto 200 cm tall. Phyllaries dorsally glabrous, receptacle bristles scabrous setose. Cypselas grey.

32. C. quettensis

-

Plants 10-30 cm tall. Phyllaries dorsally hairy, receptacle bristles scabrous setose. Cypselas brown.

35. C. schugnanica

21.

+

Plants annual. Corolla 4.5–5 mm long.

39. C. tenella

-

Plants biennual or perennial. Corolla > 8 mm long.

22

22.

+

Corolla ca 4 cm or more long, with 6-7 mm long limb lobes.

28. C. onopordioides

-

Corolla < 3.5 cm long, with upto 4 mm long limb lobes.

23

23.

+

Corolla 2.5-3 cm long. Phyllaries > 100.

24

-

Corolla < 2.5 cm long. Phyllaries < 100.

25

24.

+

Plants arachnoid, densely white floccose. Leaves pinnately lobed with thick midrib, terminating into stout spine. Spines of phyllaries dagger shaped. Corolla reddish-purple. Cypselas 4.5-5 mm long. Pappus 10-15 mm long.

12. C. chionophila

-

Plants not densely white floccose. Leaves pinnately lobed but midrib not thick, lobes terminating into soft spine. Spines of phyllaries not dagger shaped. Corolla light purple. Cypselas 6-7 mm long. Pappus 20-25 mm long.

44. C. eriobasis

25.

+

Capitula small, 6-7 mm in diameter including spines, with 9-15 florets. Corolla ca 9 mm long.

18. C. griffithiana

-

Capitula large, more than 1.0 cm in diameter including spines, with more than 15 florets. Corolla > 10 mm long.

26

26.

+

Capitula all or mostly borne in racemes or compound racemes or in spikes on main stem and branches.

27

-

Capitula never borne in racemes or spikes, solitary, terminal on main stem and branches.

28

27.

+

Capitula 3-5 cm in diameter. Involucre more than 1.5 cm wide, arachnoid. Inner phyllaries 17-22 mm long.

16. C. falconeri

-

Capitula 2-2.5 cm in diameter. Involucre < 1.5 cm wide, non-arachnoid. Inner phyllaries ca 15 mm long.

23. C. mattfeldii

28.

+

Leaves prominently yellowish on both sides. Phyllaries 35-45, usually yellowish glandulose.

11. C. carthamoides

-

Leaves not yellowish on both sides. Phyllaries 50-80 with pale or not but not yellowish glandulose.

29

29.

+

Cypselas winged.

30

-

Cypselas not winged.

32

30.

+

Corolla tube almost equaling the limb. Innermost phyllaries with an apical oblong spathulate, fimbriate - lacerate appendage. Cypselas 8-8.5 mm long.

31. C. pycnoloba

-

Corolla tube < half or shorter than limb. Innermost phyllaries with no such appendage. Cypselas 2.5-6 mm long.

31

31.

+

Capitula (3.5-) 4.0-6.0 cm in diameter including spines. Involucre heteromorphic. Phyll. aries c. 60, outermost and median phyllaries smaller than the inner ones, triangular-ovate, apically with triquetrous, strong, reflexed or spreading spines, inner phyllaries short spined or carti-laginous.

26. C. multiloba

-

Capitula 1.0-2.8 (-3.0) cm in diameter including spines. Involucre not heteromorphic. Phyllaries 80-90, outermost and median phyllaries almost equal to the inner ones, not triangular-ovate, apically with simple, stout or erect spine, inner phyllaries not spiny.

27. C. koelzii

32.

+

Capitula 1.0-2.5 cm in diameter.

33

-

Capitula 3-8 cm in diameter.

36

33.

+

Capitula with 20-30 florets.

6. C. ariana

-

Capitula with 50-70 florets.

34

34.

+

Leaves discolorous, laxly punctate glandular. Capitula 1-1.2 cm in diameter including spines. Involucre umbilicate-rotundate. Phyllaries ca 80.

3. C. schistose

-

Leaves concolorous not punctate glandular. Capitula 2-2.5 (-3) cm in diameter including spines. Involucre ovoid globose - depressed globose. Phyllaries 50-70.

35

35.

+

Stem usually with thread like petiolar remains at the base. Leaves pectinately much dissected. Secondary veins of the lobes not prominent. Involucre depressed globose. Florets pink. Phyllaries 50-60.

41. C. trollii

-

Stem without such thread like petiolar remains at the base. Leaves not pectinately dissected. Secondary veins of the lobes very prominent beneath. Involucre ovoid globose. Florets rosy. Phyllaries 60-70.

4. C. khashensis

36.

+

Florets pink or pinkish.

37

-

Florets other than pink (Reddish purple, purple and intense rosy).

40

37.

+

Leave pinnatipartite-pinnati-sect, lateral lobes 20-30. Florets 100-150 per capitulum.

21. C. kerstanii

-

Leave pinnatipartite, pinnati-sect, lateral lobes 5-9. Florets < 100 per capitulum.

38

38.

+

Phyllaries ca 50 with pale, sessile glands.

24. C. oxytoma

-

Phyllaries more than 50, eglandu-lar.

39

39.

+

Capitula 3-3.5 cm in diameter. Innermost phyllaries pale, not bright pink.

36. C. scheibeana

-

Capitula 4-8 cm in diameter. Innermost phyllaries bright pink.

19. C. haeckeliae

40.

+

Leaves decurrent forming a narrow wing on the stem and rachis.

41

-

Leaves neither decurrent nor forming a wing on the stem and rachis.

 42

41.

+

Involucre semiglobose or depre-ssed globose. Phyllaries 50-60. Corolla tube ± equal or 1/3 shorter than the limb, limb lobes 3-4 mm long. Anther tube purple.

 25. C. macrocarpa

-

Involucre globose. Phyllaries 70-80. Corolla tube slightly shorter than the limb, limb lobes ca 2 mm long. Anther tube reddish.

13. C. chitralensis

42.

+

Stem basally indurated caespitose bearing membranous remains of petiole of decayed leaves and woolly white-floccose hairs on internodes.

40. C. thomsonii

-

Stem not as above, not bearing remains of petiole of decayed leaves and woolly white-floccose hairs absent on internodes.

43

43.

+

Plants corymbosely branched. Florets rosy to intensely rosy.

44

-

Plants not corymbosely branched. Florets purple pinkish.

45

44.

+

Leaves leathery. Capitula 4-6 cm in diameter. Cypselas indistinctly mottled.

42. C. acanthoblephara

-

Leaves soft, not leathery. Capitula < 4 cm in diameter. Cypselas indistinctly blackish spotted.

 4. C. khashensis

45.

+

Corolla tube ± half as long as the limb. Cypselas shortly acute-auricled at the apex.

22. C. kuramensis

-

Corolla tube ± as long as the limb. Cypselas not as above.

46

46.

+

Capitula solitary, terminal on main stem. Cauline leaves basally cordate - auriculate, sinuately lobed or undulate.

7. C. auriculata

-

Capitula solitary, terminal on main stem and branches also. Cauline leaves cordate at the base, pinnatisect, sometimes lyrate.

10. C. buphthalmoides