General:
Perennial herb from a taproot and short-branched stem-base; stems erect, simple or occasionally branched in larger forms, solitary, sparsely to densely stiff-hairy, obscurely to moderately glandular, 3-30 cm tall.
Leaves:
Basal leaves linear-oblanceolate to spoon-shaped, hairy and glandular like the stems, long-stalked, 1-8 cm long, 1-12 mm wide; stem leaves similar, few, mostly linear, somewhat reduced upwards.
Flowers:
Heads with ray and disk flowers, solitary or occasionally several in larger forms, the disks 9-20 mm wide; involucres 5-9 mm tall; involucral bracts sparsely to densely stiff-hairy with long, white hairs, obscurely to conspicuously glandular, more or less equal, green, sometimes with brown midveins and narrow, papery margins; ray flowers 15-45, pink or purple to deep blue or violet, 5-14 mm long, 1.3-3.6 mm wide, occasionally reduced and inconspicuous or lacking; disk flowers 4.0-6.5 mm long.
Fruits:
Achenes 2-nerved, densely, long, silky-hairy, these appressed or ascending and sometimes obscuring the outer pappus; pappus double, the inner of 20-30 firm bristles, the outer of well-developed short scales.
If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.
Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Erigeron poliospermus var. typicus Cronquist