Corms globose to depressed-globose. Leaves 70-150 × 1-3 mm. Heads in dense, spiciform arrays (closely spaced, stems usually obscured by heads). Involucres 7-9(-12) mm. Phyllaries in (4-)5-6 series. Florets (3-)4-5(-6).

Flowering mid Aug-Oct. Prairies, mesquite-grasslands, roadsides, fencerows, sands, clay, sandy loams, often rocky; 50-300 m; Ark., Kans., Mo., Okla., Tex.

Varieties mucronata and punctata intergrade where their ranges meet in central Texas (G. L. Nesom and R. J. O´Kennon 2001). Plants currently identified as Liatris punctata or L. mucronata in northern Arkansas, southern Missouri, and adjacent Kansas appear to represent an undescribed race, perhaps most closely related to L. aestivalis.