Artemisia gracilescens Krascheninnikov & Iljin, Sist. Zametki Mater. Gerb. Krylova Tomsk. Gosud. Univ. Kuybysheva 1949(1-2): 2. 1949.

Subshrubs, 15-30 cm tall, with a thick rootstock, gray pubescent, later glabrescent. Lower stem leaves: petiole 3-5 mm; leaf blade triangular-ovate, 1-2 × 0.6-1 cm, gray pubescent and gland-dotted, 2- or 3-pinnatisect; segments 2 or 3 pairs, 3-lobuled; lobules narrowly linear. Middle stem leaves ovate-oblong, 1- or 2-pinnatisect. Upper leaves oblong-ovate, 1- or 2-pinnatisect; leaflike bracts narrowly linear, entire. Synflorescence a narrow conical panicle. Involucre oblong or ellipsoid, 1-1.5 mm in diam.; phyllaries keeled, gland-dotted and puberulent or later sparsely puberulent. Florets 2-5. Achenes oblong. Fl. and fr. Aug-Oct.

Rocky slopes, Gobi Desert, dry canyons, terraces, roadsides, semidesert or desert steppes, saline-alkaline soils; 800-2300 m. N Xinjiang [Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia].