Leaves oblanceolate, c. 8–18 cm long, 24.5 cm wide, greyish green, becoming glabrous; lateral lobes in (3 ) 4 pairs, deltoid and falcate, often with distally directed apices which are acute and often caudate; distal margins of upper 2 or 3 lobes entire or with 1 (2) acute lobes, proximal margins entire or with 1 acute lobe close to midrib; terminal lobe sagittate, acute; petiole green suffused with purple. Scapes c. 7 cm long at anthesis, c. 25 cm long in fruit, green suffused with pink, woolly in bud, glabrous at anthesis except just below involucre. Capitula c. 3 cm diam.; outer bracts ovate-lanceolate, appressed to inner bracts basally, patent to abruptly reflexed in upper half, with white to pale pink borders 0.3–0.5 mm wide, marginally ciliolate, usually without calli; inner bracts linear, 12–14 mm long, c. 13 mm wide, corniculate at tips. Outer florets with ligule apically naviculate, exceeding involucre by 7–11 mm; anthers with pollen; stigmas greenish yellow. Achenes turbinate, 2.5–3 mm long, c. 1 mm wide, smooth to verrucate in lower ½, with incurved flat spines c. 0.2 mm long apically, pale cinnamon to pale ochre; cone broadly cylindrical, 0.5–0.8 mm long; beak 5–10 mm long. Pappus 6 mm long, white.