Slender erect annual to biennial or winter-annual herb up to c. 6 dm. tall, us. sparingly branched below infl. Stems sulcate, hispid with short white hairs, c. 5 mm. diam. at base. Lower lvs with lamina c. (3)-5-10 × 1-3 cm. on subamplexicaul petiole < lamina; submembr., oblong to elliptic-oblong in outline, coarsely irregularly sharply dentate to dentately lobed, scabrid on both surfaces; mid laminae similar; upper laminae subsessile, tapering to auriculate base. Infl. us. ample, lax, subcorymbose. Capitula ∞, ± 6-8 mm. long, 5 mm. diam., calyculate with a few small bracteoles. Phyll. c. 12, c. 5 mm. long, linear, us. sparsely scaberulous on back, keeled, margins scarious, narrowed gradually to subacute apex. Florets up to ± 30; ♀ filiform, 4-toothed; perfect narrow-funnelform, 5-toothed. Achenes subcompressed, narrow-cylindric, c. 2 mm. long, scaberulous in grooves. Pappus-hairs fine, white, c. 5 mm. long.

2n = 60

Erect annual to short-lived perennial herb. Mid cauline lvs hispid with short to long jointed hairs on upper surface and long jointed hairs on lower, apetiolate, narrow- to ovate-elliptic, dentate to pinnately lobed or 1-pinnatifid with triangular to narrow-oblong, few-toothed segments, not amplexicaul to amplexicaul and dentate or 1-3-fid at base, (3)-7-12-(18) × (0.5)-2-5 cm. Uppermost lvs smaller, usually lanceolate and more often dentate or only shallowly lobed. Supplementary bracts 4-6, 1-2 mm long. Involucral bracts 10-13, glabrous, (5)-6-7 mm long. Ray florets 0. Disc yellow, c. 2 mm diam. Achenes subcylindric, slightly constricted below apex, usually ± evenly hairy, (2)-2.2-2.6-(3), mm long.