Herbs 30-80 cm tall, perennial. Stem solitary, apically usually branched, densely and thickly cobwebby, with fibrous petiole remains at base. Leaves papery, abaxially whitish to grayish white and densely cobwebby to thickly lanate, adaxially green, glabrous, and not glandular. Basal and lower cauline leaves long petiolate; leaf blade ± narrowly elliptic, ovate, or ovate-lanceolate, 10-15 × 4-7 cm, pinnatipartite; segments 4 or 5(-7) pairs, ovate-triangular to linear-elliptic, margin finely and densely spinulose. Middle cauline leaves similar but shortly petiolate or sessile. Pseudocephalia 1 to several, ca. 4 cm in diam. Capitula 1.5-2 cm. Phyllaries 24-28, glabrous, abaxially not gland-dotted; outermost phyllaries numerous, oblanceolate, 7-8 mm, unequal, ca. 1/2 as long as involucre, claw margin long ciliate in proximal half, distal portion brown, broadly elliptic, and margin shortly ciliate; middle phyllaries narrowly elliptic, ca. 1.3 cm, distal portion gradually constricted from middle into a spiny tip and margin shortly ciliate; inner phyllaries narrowly elliptic, ca. 1.5 cm, apex dentate. Florets ca. 1 cm. Corolla white, tube outside gland-dotted. Achene ca. 1 cm, hairs brownish yellow. Pappus scales linear, ca. 3 mm, connate almost entirely. Fl. and fr. Jul-Oct. 2n = 32+2B*.
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