Stems 5-12 dm. Leaf blades: proximal mostly lobed 4/5 distance to midrib; distal not clasping. Inflorescences: bud prickles often branched. Capsules mostly closely prickly, surface partially obscured, prickles straight or incurved. 2 n = 28.

Flowering spring-summer; fruiting summer-fall. Foothills and adjacent high plains; 800-2200 m; Ariz., N.Mex.; Mexico (Chihuahua and Sonora).