Plants 75-140 cm. Leaves: basal persistent; cauline mostly whorled (in 3s); faces glabrous or sparsely hairy. Paleae puberulent. Ray florets 11-16. Disc florets 35-90. 2n = 14. Flowering mid summer-early fall. Prairies, meadows, roadsides, along railways; 100-900 m; Ala., Ga., Ill., Ind., Ky., Md., N.Y., N.C., Ohio, Pa., S.C., Tenn., Va., W.Va.