Aster subg. Galatea Cassini, Bull. Sci. Soc. Philom. Paris 1818: 165. 1818; Crinitaria Cassini.

Herbs, perennial; rhizome robust. Stems erect or ascending, usually branched above, rarely simple. Leaves sessile, blade oblong or lanceolate to linear, often gland-dotted, lower 3-veined, mid and upper 1-veined, margin entire, often recurved. Capitula radiate, sometimes discoid, small or medium-sized, in corymbiform synflorescences, rarely solitary. Involucre obconic or campanulate to almost hemispheric; phyllaries 3-5-seriate, greenish or green along midvein, imbricate, membranous, glabrous or puberulent, 1-3-veined, margin usually scarious, outer lanceolate to lanceolate-ovate, apex acute, innermost oblong to oblong-lanceolate, margin more widely scarious, rounded or ± obtuse, apex sometimes acute. Receptacles slightly convex, alveolate, fimbriate. Ray florets sterile, without style, 5-20 in 1 series, rarely absent, lamina pinkish or bluish violet; disk florets bisexual, fertile, 5-60(-100), yellow, sometimes becoming pinkish violet, usually 1.5-2 × involucre length, limb funnelform, lobes 5, lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate; anther base obtuse, apical appendage lanceolate; style branch tip lanceolate or triangular. Achenes lanceolate or oblong, ± flattened, strigose, ribbed. Pappus 2(or 3)-seriate, of whitish, sometimes purplish tinged, unequal, ± stiff, barbellate bristles longer than achene, apex acute to ± clavate.

The genus Crinitaria, often considered distinct (see Crinitina below), is typified by Chrysocoma biflora Linnaeus, a species that belongs to Galatella (Soják, Zprávy Krajsk. Vlastiv. Muz. Olomouci 215: 1-2. 1982).

About 40-50 species: C and S Europe to NE Asia; 11 species in China.

(Authors: Chen Yilin (陈艺林 Chen Yi-ling); Luc Brouillet)