Herbs 35-70 cm tall, perennial, with a taproot. Caudex with leaf sheath residues. Stems solitary or few, erect, branched apically, glabrous or somewhat floccose and glabrescent, leafy. Basal leaves linear to linear-lanceolate, 10-25 × 0.4-1 cm, margin flat, apex acuminate. Stem leaves similar to basal leaves but smaller. Synflorescence laxly corymbiform, with few capitula. Involucre cylindric, 1.4-1.6 × ca. 0.5 cm at anthesis, to 3 cm in fruit. Phyllaries arachnoid branched hairy; outermost phyllaries triangular to ovate-triangular. Achene cylindric, 1-1.5 cm, with smooth ribs, glabrous. Pappus dirty white, to 2 cm. Fl. and fr. Jul-Aug.