Annual or perennial herbs. Indumentum of crisped, multicellular, eglandular hairs. Sessile to very shortly stalked resin globules frequently present on stems, leaves, involucral bracts, corolla and achenes. Stems terete, not winged. Leaves alternate, sessile, spreading, attenuate at base, denticulate, dentate or lyrate. Capitula axillary or leaf-opposed, solitary or in pairs, on often short peduncles, disciform, heterogamous, broadly hemispherical, hemispherical or cupular; involucral bracts subequal in length, cartilaginous, incurved, in 3–4 rows; innermost row conspicuously narrower; receptacle flat, glabrous, epaleate. Marginal florets female, white or pink to purple at anthesis; lobes 3, tiny. Disc florets bisexual, producing achenes, but in some species infertile; corolla cylindrical to narrowly campanulate, 4-or 5-lobed, pink to maroon. Achenes cylindrical, longitudinally ribbed; carpopodium ring-like, white, prominent; twin hairs (when present) straight, antrorse to appressed, in a basal whorl, and sometimes also scattered on body of achene. Pappus comprising a stiff, transverse or erect annular corona, sometimes produced into short slender persistent bristles.
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