Herbs, perennial, 40-90 cm tall, rhizomatous. Stems erect, simple, reddish striate, sparsely scabridulous upward, sparsely minutely stipitate glandular below leaves, more so distally. Leaves cauline, gradually increased in size upward; lowest leaves withered by anthesis, sessile, (blade shape not observed), sparsely to densely scabridulous, minutely stipitate glandular, very sparsely so adaxially, margin serrate to serrulate, scabridulous-ciliate, 3-veined, midvein prominent adaxially, apex acute or sometimes obtuse, mucronulate; lower to upper leaves lanceolate, 4-11 × 0.7-2 cm, base attenuate; synflorescence leaves lanceolate, 2-6 × 0.5-1.5 cm, margin serrulate to entire. Capitula (1 or)2-10 or more, in terminal corymbiform synflorescences, rarely solitary; peduncles 20-80 mm, moderately to densely scabridulous, minutely stipitate glandular; bracts narrowly ovate, entire, upper bracts closely subtending capitula. Involucres broadly campanulate, 7-9 mm; phyllaries 3-seriate, unequal, base hardened, abaxially glabrous, eglandular or sparsely minutely stipitate glandular, margin scarious, erose, leaflike in distal 1/3, ciliate, midvein slightly translucent, apex obtuse to rounded, ciliate; outer phyllaries lanceolate to oblong, 2-4 × 0.9-1.1 mm, abaxially minutely stipitate glandular distally, midvein sparsely to moderately strigillose; middle phyllaries oblong, 6-7 × 1.2-1.3 mm, distal margin and apex purplish; inner phyllaries linear-oblong, 9.5-10 × 1-2 mm, scarious, apex purplish. Ray florets 30-40, purple, tube sparsely hairy, lamina 15-18 × ca. 1.5 mm, eglandular; disk florets yellow, ca. 7 mm, tube and limb base sparsely hairy, sparsely minutely stipitate glandular, limb campanulate, ca. 4 mm, lobes spreading, tip recurved, triangular to narrowly triangular, 1.2-1.5 mm, sparsely strigillose apically, eglandular. Achenes purple proximally to mottled purple distally, obovoid, compressed, 2.3-2.5 mm, moderately to densely strigillose, sparsely minutely stipitate glandular apically, 2-ribbed. Pappus 4-seriate, dirty white, of slender, barbellate bristles; outermost bristles 0-4, 0.2-0.6 mm; outer bristles absent or 1, ca. 2.8 mm; inner bristles 4.8-5.2 mm, tapering; innermost bristles 5.3-5.7 mm, tapering. Fl. and fr. Jul-Oct. 2n = 18.
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