Short-lived perennial herb, up to 0.6 m high. Stems herbaceous, woody towards the base, branching, slender, glabrous. Leaves deltoid to hastate in outline, lobed with apical lobe usually about half the total length of lamina, upper leaves distinctly lobed, occasionally dissected; lamina of upper leaves 12-37 x 17-40 mm; lower leaves deltoid, less distinctly lobed; lamina of lower leaves 17-40 x 23-46 mm, glabrous above and below, or sparsely hairy below, mainly on veins, with few hairs in angles of lobes on margins; apex acuminate to acute; margin dentate; base truncate to subcordate, rarely cordate on lower leaves; petiole 7-43(-58) mm long, glabrous to sparsely hairy; auricles lanceolate, dentate, varying in size and persistence, rarely absent. Capitula heterogamous, radiate, few (8) to many (18-92) per branch in lax corymbose panicles; peduncles 6-25(-34) mm long, glabrous, bracteate (bracts 1.6-5.0 mm long). Involucre calyculate; phyllaries 8-10, rarely 12, 4.0-5.5 mm long, glabrous; margins scarious. Ray florets 5 or 6(rarely also 7 or 8), 4.5-9.0 mm long; limb 3-6 mm long, 4-veined (rarely 6-veined). Disc florets (8-)24-30; corolla 3.2-5.2 mm long. Cypselae obovate, compressed, margined, brown, 2.0-2.6 mm long, usually densely (though sometimes sparsely) ciliate on margins and faces, or rarely hairy on faces only. Pappus 3.5-4.0 mm long.
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