Annual, herb, 30–100 cm tall. Stem erect, sometimes decumbent – ascending, rigid, usually divaricately branched in upper part, white puberulent, glabrous in lower part. Basal leaves persistent or withering at anthesis; median leaves large; petiole narrowly winged, 0.5–4 cm long or sometimes upper leaves sessile – subsessile, lamina elliptic–lanceolate to elliptic or rhombic–elliptic, or broadly ovate to cordate, 4–12 cm long, 2–5 cm wide, sparsely puberulent or glabrescent on either side, usually rather densely hairy on veins, prominently reticulate beneath or not, base broadly or narrowly cuneate, margins crenate or incised, serrate, or doubly serrate, apex acute or obtuse; upper and lower leaves smaller, shortly petiolate. Capitula few, rarely many, small, in a lax or dense corymb or panicle; peduncle 0.8–3 cm long, gray–white or ferruginous puberulent. Involucre hemispheric, 4–5 mm long, 6–8 mm wide; phyllaries 2–seriate, green, subequal, narrowly elliptic, thin, submembranous, outer phyllaries mostly connate, sparsely white villous, apex obtuse. Corollas ca 2.5 cm long, viscid–glandular, pubescent. Cypselas blackish brown, oblanceolate, contracted at base, apex obtuse, ca 4 mm long, ca 1 mm wide, glandular, smooth, slightly muricate to densely tuberculate. Pappus bristles 3 or 5, clavate, ca 4 mm long, basally connate into a ring, ending in a viscid–glandular knob.
A highly variable species, divided in number of varieties, following three varieties are found in our area.