General:
Perennial herb with a taproot and sometimes a short-branched woody base; stems erect, simple or branched, several or solitary, hairy to nearly glabrous, 10-60 cm tall.

Leaves:
Basal leaves alternate, oblanceolate to oval, narrowly stalked, tufted, hairy to nearly glabrous, 5-40 cm long, 0.5-4.0 cm wide, spiny-toothed to entire; stem leaves similar, reduced, becoming unstalked upwards.

Flowers:
Heads with ray and disk flowers, solitary or sometimes several in flat-topped to rounded inflorescence; involucres 15-30 mm tall; involucral bracts broadly oblong, graduated, margins thin, dry and papery; ray flowers 0-30, inconspicuous, seldom exceeding pappus; disk flowers numerous, yellow, 10-14 mm long.

Fruits:
Achenes elongate, glabrous; pappus of stiff, brownish, hairlike bristles.

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia