Herbs 10-40 cm tall, perennial. Stem solitary, erect, simple, covered at base with fibrous remains of petioles. Basal and lower stem leaves petiolate; petiole 1.5-4 cm; leaf blade elliptic, narrowly elliptic, or linear, 3-20 × 0.2-2(-4) cm, undivided, runcinate-pinnately lobed, or pinnatisect, abaxially grayish white and arachnoid tomentose, adaxially green and glabrous, margin entire, apex acute to acuminate; lateral lobes 1-7 pairs, linear or obliquely narrowly triangular, strongly reclinate; terminal lobe linear. Middle and upper stem leaves gradually smaller upward on stem. Capitulum solitary, terminal on stem. Involucre campanulate, ca. 2 cm in diam. Phyllaries in ca. 5 rows, apically purplish red, apex long acuminate; outer phyllaries triangular-subulate, ca. 12 × 1 mm; middle phyllaries narrowly ovate-elliptic, 10-13 × ca. 1.5 mm; inner phyllaries narrowly elliptic, ca. 15 × 1.5-2 mm. Corolla purple, ca. 1.5 cm, tube ca. 9 mm, limb ca. 6 mm. Achene cylindric, ca. 4 mm, glabrous. Pappus dirty white; outer bristles ca. 4 mm, plumose; inner bristles ca. 1.3 cm. Fl. and fr. Jul-Oct.
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