Perennials, 20-80 (rarely to 120 in desert washes) cm, aromatic (rhizomatous). Stems relatively few to relatively numerous, erect, gray-green, simple or widely branched, hairy. Leaves cauline, uniformly gray-green, green, or white, or bicolor (white and green); blades linear to broadly elliptic, 1.5-11 × 0.5-4 cm, entire or lobed to relatively deeply pinnatifid, faces hairy. Heads (erect to nodding, peduncles 0 or 2-5 mm) in congested to open (widely branched) arrays. Involucres campanulate or turbinate, (1-)2-4(-5) × 2-5(-8) mm. Phyllaries (gray-green), lanceolate to ovate or obovate (margins narrowly hyaline), densely tomentose. Florets: pistillate 5-12; bisexual 6-45; corollas yellow, sometimes red-tinged, 1.5-2.8 mm, glabrous. Cypselae ellipsoid ca. 0.5 mm, (obscurely nerved) glabrous. 2n = 18, 36, 54.
Plant: perennial subshrub 40-100 cm, from rhizome; herbage white woolly; stems many, simple, gray- to white-tomentose Leaves: leaves alternate, entire to dissected, 1-11 cm, linear to narrowly elliptic, densely tomentose INFLORESCENCE: 5-30+ cm, narrow, open to dense; primary inflorescence a head, each resembling a flower; heads < 7 mm diam, generally nodding; phyllaries lanceolate to (ob)ovate, densely tomentose, margins narrowly transparent Flowers: Pistillate flowers 5-12; corollas generally < 2 mm; Disk flowers 6-30; corollas < 2 mm, pale yellow; anther tips acute to awl-shaped; style branches flat, fringed or blunt (sometimes simple, tack-shaped in staminate flowers) Fruit: achenes, < 0.5 mm, glabrous Misc: Generally dry, sandy to rocky soils; < 3500 m.