Japan Flora: Stems leafy, narrowly winged, crisped-puberulent in upper portion; radical leaves long, broadly ovate or elongate- deltoid, 5-8.5 cm. long, cuspidate, mucronate-toothed, trun­cate to cordate, loosely puberulent on both sides, long-petiolate, the cauline becoming gradually smaller toward tip, clasping; heads in dense corymbs, very short-pedicellate; involucres tubular, 8-12 mm. long, cobwebby, dark-purplish on upper side; bracts 4- to 6-seriate, the outer lanceolate or oblong, acute to acuminate, the inner broadly linear, acuminate; corollas pur­plish, about 10 mm. long. Aug.-Sept. Alpine regions; 

Hokkaido, Honshu (n. distr.). s. Kuriles. Kuriles and Kam­chatka.

var. kudoana (Tatew. & Kitam.) Kitam. Cau­line leaves smaller, lanceolate; involucral bracts acute. Hok­kaido (Mount Apoi in Hidaka Prov.).

var. elongata Kitam. Stems 30-60 cm. long; heads many; involucres about 12 mm. long; corollas 11-12 mm. long. Hokkaido and Honshu (n. distr.).

var. insularis Tatew. & Kitam. Stems 5-13 cm. long; involucres about 12 mm. long; corollas about 13 mm. long. Hokkaido (Rishiri and Rebun Isis.).

var. japonica Koidz. Outer and median involucral bracts long-caudate. Honshu (Mount Chokaisan in Ugo Prov.).

var. daisetsuensis (Nakai) Kitam. Stems stout, many-leaved, about 1 m. long; leaves widely decurrent on the stem; heads many, dense, with elongate involucral bracts. Hokkaido (Mount Daisetsu).