Herbs perennial, erect, often clumped, with fleshy turions just below ground that leave brown basal scales. Stems 10-70 cm tall, branched or simple, strigillose and sparsely glandular above, glabrous below with raised strigillose lines decurrent from margins of petioles. Leaves sessile above, lower ones with petioles 2-8 mm; cauline blade ovate to broadly lanceolate above to obovate below, 2-7 × 1.2-2.6 cm, subglabrous except for sparsely strigillose margin and midvein, base rounded, margin sharply denticulate with 15-20 teeth per side or subentire below, apex subacuminate. Inflorescence and flowers nodding to suberect. Sepals 4-7.5 mm. Petals bright rose-purple, (7-)10-16 mm. Stigma subcapitate, entire. Capsules 3.5-7.5 cm, sparsely strigillose, erect and appressed to stem; pedicels 0.1-1 cm. Seeds brown, 1.2-1.5 mm, finely papillose, with short chalazal collar; coma white, detaching easily. Fl. Jul-Sep, fr. Jul-Sep. 2n = 36.