General:
Perennial herb from a taprooted, woody stem-base; stems erect, 10-60 cm tall; soft-hairy.

Leaves:
Basal, (2) 3 to 6 (8), ascending, 4-8 cm long, 3-parted with each leaflet 2- to 3-times pinnatifid, the margins pinnatifid to dissected throughout, the ultimate segments linear, 1-2 mm wide, soft-hairy; stalks 6-8 cm long.

Flowers:
Inflorescence a solitary, terminal flower; flower stalks woolly or densely soft-hairy, becoming smooth in age; involucral bracts 3, sometimes more, leaf-like, similar to basal leaves, short-stalked; petals absent; sepals 5 to 7, petal-like, white, tinged purple near the bases on outside, egg-shaped, 15-30 mm long, 10-17 mm wide, hairy outside, smooth inside; stamens 150-200.

Fruits:
Achenes, numerous in a spheric head, rarely cylindric, on stalks 15-20 cm long, the achenes ellipsoid, 3-4 mm long, about 1.5 mm wide, not winged, soft-hairy; beaks (styles) curved to curved back with age, 2-5 cm long, silky-feathery.

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia