Plants 30-100(-200) cm. Primary stems 0.3-1(-2) mm diam. Leaf blades narrowly to broadly lanceolate, 5-60 × 0.5-6 mm. Heads in crowded corymbiform arrays. Phyllaries 2-3 × 1-2 mm. Receptacles deeply pitted, glabrous. Cypselae 1.2-2.2 mm, 7-9-ribbed, short-setulose. 2n = 10 (rarely 8). Flowering Jul-Nov. Calcareous, clay, or sandy soils, disturbed habitats; 0-500 m; Ala., Ark., Ill., Ind., Iowa, Kans., Ky., La., Miss., Mo., Nebr., N.Mex., Okla., Ohio, Pa., S.C., Tenn., Va. Amphiachyris dracunculoides is common in the south-central states, often in relatively large populations.