Herbs 2-7 cm tall, perennial, monocarpic, stemless or shortly stemmed. Taproot conic, fleshy. Caudex 0.5-1.5 cm in diam., simple, covered with remains of petioles. Rosette leaves petiolate; leaf blade narrowly elliptic, spatulate, or linear, 0.5-2(-4) × 0.1-0.4(-1) cm, abaxially white and densely sericeous to lanate, adaxially grayish green or yellowish green, base attenuate, margin entire, apex obtuse. Capitula 5-25, in center of leaf rosette, in a hemispheric synflorescence 2.5-5 cm in diam., sessile. Involucre cylindric to campanulate, 5-8 mm in diam. Phyllaries in 3 or 4 rows, apically purple and villous, margin purplish, hyaline, and entire or apically with 1 or 2 lateral teeth, apex acute to acuminate; outer phyllaries narrowly oblong to obovate, 8-10 × 2.5-3 mm; middle and inner phyllaries linear, 9-10 × 0.5-2 mm. Receptacle bristles 1-2 mm. Corolla rose-purple, 7-9 mm, tube 3-4 mm, limb 4.5-5 mm, lobes 1.5-2 mm. Achene brown or gray with dark spots, cylindric to fusiform, 4-6 mm, glabrous. Pappus in 2 rows; outer bristles dirty white, 3-4 mm; inner bristles brown, 7-8 mm. Fl. and fr. Jun-Aug.
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