Herbs perennial, 30-40 cm tall, with straight roots. Stems several, cespitose, prostrate or ascending, not branched, hispid, short strigose. Leaves sessile, linear-lanceolate or oblanceolate, 5-10 × 0.6-1.7 cm, hispid and short strigose, base rounded or cuneate, apex acuminate. Inflorescences terminal, subcapitate, 2-4 cm wide at anthesis; bracts lanceolate, 5-10 × 1-2 mm, densely hispid and pubescent. Pedicel slender, 4-10 mm, to 1.5 cm in fruit, densely hispid and strigose. Calyx 7-9 mm, parted to 1/3 from base; lobes lanceolate-triangular, densely hispid and short strigose outside, densely villous inside. Corolla dirty red, urceolate, 0.9-1.1 cm, base 2-3 mm wide, widest at middle, 6.5-8 mm wide; throat 3-4 mm wide; nectary ringlike, ca. 1 mm, membranous, pubescent; lobes of limb reflexed, triangular, ca. 1 mm, densely strigose outside, 5-sulcate below middle, folds semielliptic, ca. 2 mm, pubescent. Filaments ca. 1.5 cm, inserted 2-2.5 mm above base of corolla tube; anthers united at base, 4.5-5 mm, included. Style ca. 1 cm, glabrous. Nutlets 2-2.5 mm, tuberculate, wrinkled. Fl. Jun-Jul.
Open rocky ground, rocky slopes, steppe and scree; at elevations from 2,200-4,500 metres. Moist places by streams; at elevations from 1,600-3,000 metres.