Herbs 10-30 cm tall, perennial, polycarpic, caespitose. Caudex branched. Stem solitary, 3-15 mm in diam., erect, simple. Rosette and lower stem leaves petiolate; leaf blade spatulate, narrowly elliptic, or oblong, 2-25 × 0.5-2.8 cm, both surfaces green and densely golden yellow and white tomentose, margin dentate, apex acute. Upper stem leaves sessile, gradually shorter upward on stem. Capitula densely clustered on flat stem apex in a synflorescence 1.3-5.5 cm in diam., hidden at anthesis in a lanate indumentum, sessile. Involucre tubular, 0.5-1.5 cm in diam. Phyllaries in 1 row, narrowly elliptic to linear, 5-9.5 × 0.5-1.5 mm, apically pilose and glandular, margin membranous, apex acute. Receptacle sparsely papillose; papillae ca. 0.3 mm. Corolla pale purple to bright purple, 0.8-1.2 cm, tube 1.5-4 mm, limb 5.5-8.5 mm, lobes 1.5-2.5 mm. Achene cylindric to fusiform, 2.4-3.8 mm, smooth, densely papillose. Pappus dirty white; outer bristles 1-4 mm; inner bristles 8-11 mm. Fl. and fr. Aug-Sep. 2n = 36.
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