Perennial herb 20–75 cm tall; stems erect, one or several, arising from woody rootstock, often purplish, scattered-setose. Leaves oblanceolate, 8–23.5 cm long, 2.2–4.5 cm wide, cuneate to attenuate into petioloid base, obscurely to coarsely serrate, apex obtuse to shortly acuminate, hispid especially beneath or scabrid, glabrescent above. Capitula solitary or 2–13 in lax corymbiform cymes, globose; stalks of individual capitula sometimes with numerous narrow bracteoles below the capitulum; involucre 15–30 mm long; phyllaries 4-seriate, lanceolate, 6–23 mm long, acute or attenuate, pale green with darker green or sometimes reddish purple apices, the outer erect or spreading; upper part of phyllaries appendage-like, narrowly lanceolate, 3–12 mm long, 0.5–1.2 mm wide, 4.2–12 times as long as wide. Corolla vivid blue-green, turquoise or pale blue, 15–27 mm long, lobes 5.5–8 mm long, with a few stiff apical hairs. Achenes 7–7.7 mm long, 10-ribbed, ascending-pubescent except towards the base, or glabrous, or glabrous except for a few fine hairs at the apex; outer pappus 1.5–4.5 mm long, inner pappus 11–18.5 mm long, tawny.