Shrubs, 70-350 cm (trunks to 20 cm diam.; soboliferous). Stems single, greenish when young, becoming tan to gray, fastigiately branched (± angled from leaf bases), glabrous or scabridulous. Leaves ascending; blades with midnerves plus 2 fainter collateral nerves evident, broadly linear to lanceolate or oblong, 20-75 × 3-8 mm, flat, margins scabrellous, apices acute to acuminate, faces glabrous, gland-dotted (in shallow pits). Heads in corymbiform arrays 3-12 cm wide. Involucres obconic, 4.5-7 × 1.5-2.2 mm. Phyllaries 15-18 in 3-4 series, in 5 vertical ranks, mostly tan, midnerves evident on distal ¹ / 2 , ± keeled, elliptic to lanceolate, 0.7-6.5 × 0.5-1.1 mm, unequal, outer often thickened and herbaceous subapically, apices acute, acuminate, or rounded, faces glabrous or sparsely scabrous. Receptacles with 0-2 scales, 0-0.5 mm. Ray florets 0. Disc florets (4-)5(-6); corollas 4-5.5 mm, glabrous, lobes 1-1.5 mm; style branches 1.9-2.3 mm, appendages subulate, 0.7-1.1 mm. Cypselae tan to brownish, subcylindric, 2.5-3.5 mm, 10-12-ribbed, densely hairy; pappi whitish tan, 4.5-7 mm. 2n = 18.

Flowering summer-fall. Margins of alkaline streams, banks of larger rivers, other moist, low, alkaline sites, less often drier slopes; 1200-2400 m; Ariz., Colo., Mont., N.Mex., Utah, Wyo.