Annuals, 30-70 cm. Stems usually 1, sparingly branched distally, weakly winged, glabrous or sparsely hairy. Leaves glabrous or sparsely hairy; blades all lance-linear, entire or coarsely toothed. Heads 1-15(-25) per plant, in paniculiform arrays. Peduncles 4-13 cm, glabrous or sparsely to moderately hairy. Involucres globoid to ovoid, 11-16 × 14-20 mm. Phyllaries sparsely to densely hairy. Ray florets 12-18, pistillate, fertile; corollas usually yellow, sometimes yellow with purple streaks, 10-20 × 5-13 mm. Disc florets 300-500(-700+); corollas yellow proximally, yellow to purple to dark blue-purple distally, 3.2-3.6 mm, lobes 5. Cypselae 2-2.9 mm, moderately hairy; pappi of 6-7 entire, aristate scales 1.5-2 mm. 2n = 30. Flowering Jul-Sep. Pine forests, edges of wet places such as bogs, ponds, lakes, ditches; 1800-2400 m; Ariz.