Shrub or shrubby herb 0.6-3 m tall; stems erect, much-branched, white-tomentose but old branches dark brown.. Leaves opposite, shortly petiolate, (narrowly) ovate or elliptic, 2-13.5 cm long, 0.5-6 cm wide, base cuneate or attenuate to rounded, margins crenulate-serrulate or serrulate, apex obtuse to acute, apiculate, somewhat bullate, discolorous, green and very sparsely softly arachnoid-pubescent and glabrescent above, whitish or silvery with dense felted tomentum beneath; petiole 0.3-2 cm long.. Capitula numerous in dense terminal and upper axillary compound corymbiform cymes; stalks of individual capitula densely white-tomentose; involucre obconic-cylindrical to campanulate-cylindrical, 2-6 mm long; phyllaries 3-4-seriate, (narrowly) ovate, obtuse and apiculate to acute, the inner fimbriate-pectinate in upper part on the membranous margins and 3.7-5.7 mm long, outer and median somewhat keeled, all darker, silvery-pubescent and often purple-tinged centrally distally.. Corolla pale to deep mauve or purple or pale lilac, 5-6.5 mm long, lobes 1.8-2.8 mm long.. Achenes 1.3-1.8 mm long, 5-10-ribbed, ribs rounded, alternating with gland-filled grooves; pappus of few caducous bristles 1.3-2.5 mm long.. Fig. 34.
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