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Annual (?biennial) herb, erect, 5–40 cm high, branched from the base; stems sparsely villous, glabrescent, glandular. Leaves dimorphic, basal ones oblanceolate with base cuneate into a winged pseudopetiole, cauline leaves sessile, oblong to slightly oblanceolate, 1–5 cm long(–15 cm in basal leaves), 0.4–1 cm wide(–1.7 cm in basal leaves), base semi-amplexicaul to auriculate, margins dentate or denticulate, apex acute or obtuse and mucronate, arachnoid-lanate beneath, pubescent but glabrescent above. Capitula 3–5 mm long, in terminal lax panicles or corymbs; stalks of individual capitula 1–6 mm long, glandular with stalked glands; phyllaries lanceolate, 2.5–3 mm long, 0.4–0.6 mm wide, with membranous margins, acute and fimbriate, glandular. Florets mauve or blue; outer florets with tube 1.5–2 mm long, sparsely glandular, lobes 0.5–0.7 mm long; style 1.7–1.8 mm long, included, with papillose branches; inner florets with tube slightly widening, 1.5–2 mm long, lobes 0.7–1 mm long and usually spreading or reflexed; anthers 1.3–1.4 mm long; style ± 2 mm long, with short clavate branches, densely papillose. Achenes of outer florets narrowly ovoid, 0.5–0.7 mm long, sparsely hairy; of inner florets very narrowly cylindric, 1–1.2 mm long, < 0.1 mm in diameter; pappus absent in outer florets; in inner florets of a single seta 2–2.5 mm long, the distal 0.8 mm plumose, those of the individual florets grouped in the centre of the capitulum. Fig. 75 (page 366).