Annual, to 1 m high; stems greyish, finely pubescent to cobwebbed. Basal leaves short-lived, oblanceolate, to 30 cm long and 6 cm wide, pinnatisect, lobes spine-tipped; cauline leaves sessile, amplexicaule, lanceolate, 3–6 cm long, 1–3 cm wide, pinnatisect with narrow spine-tipped lobes, bright glossy green above and below, glandular, glabrous to sparsely pubescent. Capitula solitary, 10–20 mm diam.; outer bracts spreading to deflexed, rigid, often cobwebbed; inner bracts entire, erect, glandular, spine-tipped. Corolla 25–30 mm long, yellow to cream with darker veins. Cypselas 5–6 mm long, dark, often rugose towards apex; pappus of many linear, acute scales, the longest 7–10 mm. Flowers mainly spring and summer.
LoM, MuM, Wim, VVP, VRiv, MSB, RobP, MuF, GipP, OtP, WaP, Gold, CVU, GGr, DunT, NIS, EGL, EGU, HSF, HNF, OtR, Strz, MonT, HFE, VAlp. Naturalized all States. Native to southern Europe and western Asia. A widespread weed of cultivation and wasteland, particularly of drier inland areas of Victoria, where declared noxious. .
