Perennial, divaricately branched, usually glabrous to hairy, 0.3 – 1.2 (-2) m tall herbs, with slightly thickened branches above. Basal and lower leaves runcinately pinnatipartite to unlobed and toothed, obovate to oblanceolate, 10 – 30 cm long, 0.5 – 10 cm wide, cauline leaves gradually highly reduced towards apex, amplexicaul, crisped hairy to setose. Capitula terminal and axillary, solitary or grouped in clusters of 2 – 4 (-8), rarely somewhat spicate, on divergent to convergent, 4 – 7 cm long peduncles. Receptacle hairy. Involucre 1 – 1.5 cm long, 0.5 – 1.5 cm wide. Phyllaries 2-seriate; inner phyllaries 2-3 times longer than the outer ones, linear lanceolate to broadly lanceolate, entirely glabrous to glandular or eglandular hairy towards apices, outer ones unequal in length and shape, comparatively thin but becoming coriaceous and callous thickened at base, glabrous or hairy. Ligules blue of various shades or sometimes drying white or pink, 1.5 – 2.5 cm long, decolourized in water. Cypselas obovoid to cylindrical, 2-3 mm long, brown mottled to brown,weakly ribbed, truncate at apices. Pappus 2-3-seriate, scales 0.2 – 0.3 (-0.8) mm long, obtuse, looking as minutely fringed crown.
A highly variable species comprising of type subspecies and Cichorium intybus subspecies glaucum (Hoffm. and Link) Tzvel. (op. cit.) which differs from the type ssp. by the glaucous-green colour of the entirely or almost glabrous plants.
C. intybus ssp. glaucum does not occur in the flora of Pakistan area. However, three varieties are recognized under the type subspecies on the basis of the number of capitula and the size of pappus scales.