Taproot thick and long. Flowering stem 50-60 (-100) cm. Leaves in rosette, 15-20 X 1-3.0 cm, oblong-lanceolate, incised-lobed. Stem leaves in whorls, smaller, sessile. Flowers pale purple, 3.5-4.0 cm long, in congested axillary whorls, substended by bracts. V - rosette leaves overwinter, new growth mid spring to mid summer. Fl - mid or late summer (August), for 3-4 weeks. Fr - mid autumn (September-October). P - by seed. Good for group planting. Drought-resistant. Z 6 (5). New.

Central Asia (Pamiro Alay), eastern Europe (Balkan Peninsula). On rocky slopes, in subalpine zone, 2,500-3,200 m.