Perennial ± erect weak-stemmed herb or straggling woody herb 30–180 cm high; stems glandular-pubescent or sparingly so, or sometimes sparsely arachnoid, brownish, leafy.. Leaves green and often glossy, sessile, oblanceolate to elliptic or broadly elliptic, broadly lanceolate or ovate in outline, 5.5–26.5 cm long, 0.9–7.5 cm wide, base ± auriculate and semi-amplexicaul, margins denticulate or more usually bidentate or lobate, shortly to deeply pinnately or pinnato-lyrately lobed, or ± laciniate, especially towards the base, the lobes ovate or oblong, denticulate, with rounded and apiculate apices, and almost glabrous to sparsely glandular-hairy or thinly arachnoid above, sometimes purple-tinged and sparsely glandular-hairy especially on margins, main veins or at least the midrib, or pilose to arachnoid beneath.. Capitula discoid, numerous in copious upper axillary and terminal lax to dense corymbs; stalks of the individual capitula thinly to densely glandular-hairy; involucre 7–10 mm long, 3–4.5 mm in diameter, greenish-brown or purple; bracts of calyculus 3–6, lax, narrow, lanceolate or narrowly so, 2–7 mm long, somewhat glandular-hairy at least on the margins; phyllaries 10–13, densely crispate-glandular to glabrous, 6.5–9.5 mm long.. Ray florets 0; disc florets purple, mauve or rarely blue, corolla 5.5–9 mm long, tube campanulate or narrowly so in upper half or third, glabrous, lobes 1–1.3 mm long.. Achenes 3.2–5 mm long, ribbed, sparsely shortly hairy in the grooves; pappus 6–9.5 mm long.
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