Herbs 15-70 cm tall, perennial, with a strong taproot. Caudex woody, simple or branched, leafless. Stem dark green, erect, apically branched and setose, basally glabrous and with few scalelike leaves only in and above middle with well-developed leaves. Lower scalelike stem leaves lanceolate, 0.5-2 × ca. 0.3 mm, apex acute. Middle stem leaves sessile, lanceolate, narrowly elliptic, or narrowly elliptic-lanceolate, 2-8 × 0.3-2.5 cm, glabrous to setose, base cuneate, margin entire or sinuate-dentate, apex acute. Upper stem leaves similar to middle stem leaves but smaller, uppermost ones bractlike. Synflorescence corymbiform, with few to some capitula. Capitula with 20-25 florets; peduncle shorter or slightly longer than capitulum, slender. Involucre cylindric, 8-11 × 3-4 mm. Phyllaries abaxially somewhat tomentose and setose on midvein; outer phyllaries linear to linear-lanceolate, longest to 1/2 as long as inner ones, apex acute to obtuse; inner phyllaries 12-14, adaxially glabrous, margin broadly scarious, apex obtuse. Anther tube 4-5 mm. Achene brown, fusiform, 4-5 mm, with 10 ribs, apically attenuate. Pappus white, 5.5-6.5 mm. Fl. and fr. Jul-Oct.
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