Herbs 15-80 cm tall. Stems grayish white, erect, branched from base or unbranched, stout, densely cobwebby-felted; wings wide, parchmentlike, spiny, toothed, or lobed. Leaves grayish white, subconcolorous, abaxially cobwebby-felted, adaxially ± densely cobwebby. Basal leaves with thick densely felted petiole; leaf blade ± narrowly elliptic, 12-20 × 3-5 cm, parchmentlike, shallowly pinnately lobed or toothed; segments or teeth 7-10 pairs, triangular to semiorbicular, with lateral spines and a brown to yellowish 5-6(-10) mm apical spine. Middle cauline leaves similar or elliptic to elliptic-lanceolate, sometimes undivided; upper cauline leaves elliptic, lanceolate, or narrowly triangular, smaller. Capitula few to many. Involucre campanulate, 3-4 cm in diam., glabrous or subglabrous. Phyllaries distally narrowed into a spine; outer phyllaries triangular, 10-15 × 2.5-3 mm, recurved; middle phyllaries lanceolate to elliptic-lanceolate, 1.8-2.5 × ca. 0.3 cm; inner phyllaries linear-elliptic to broadly linear, 3.2-3.6 × ca. 0.2 cm. Corolla purple or white, ca. 3.3 cm, tube ca. 8 mm. Achene yellowish variegated with brown, narrowly ellipsoid, ca. 1 cm, 10-ribbed. Pappus bristles pale brown, to 2.5 cm. Fl. and fr. May-Oct.
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