Tanacetum fruticulosum Lebeb., Icon. Pl. Fl. Ross. 1: 10, tab. 38. 1829; Podlech in Rech. f., Fl. Iran. Comp. IV. 158: 126. t. 119. 1986; Artemisia athanasia Besser in Bull. Soc. Imp. Nat. Mosc. 7: 24. 1834; Pyrethrum athanasia (Besser) Boiss., Fl. Or. 3: 353. 1875; Tanacetum gracile Hook. f. & Thomson in Hook.f., Fl. Brit. Ind. 3: 318. 1881; R.R.Stewart, Ann. Cat. Vasc. Pl. W. Pak. & Kashm. 787. 1972; Chrysanthemum gracile (Hook. f. & Thomson) B. Fedtsch., Rast. Turkest. 737. 1915 non Masf.; Ajania gracilis (Hook. f. & Thomson) Poljakov in Schischk. & Bobrov, Fl. USSR 26: 385. 2000. (Engl. transl.).

Appressed grayish hairy, woody shrublet, with numerous, upright to suberect, up to 45 cm tall shoots from the suffrutescent, vertical, branched, c. 1 cm thick rootstock. Leaves densely appressed hairy and punctate glandulose; lower stem leaves petiolate to subsessile, 2 – 3 cm long, 1.5 – 2 cm broad, ± tripartite, primary segments irregularly palmatifid to pinnatifid into lanceolate, obtuse ultimate segments; upper leaves less dissected, uppermost lanceolate and entire. Capitula bracteate, heterogamous, 4 – 5 mm across, shortly peduncled, congested in corymbs at the terminii of shoots. Involucre cylindrical to ± hemispherical, phyllaries pubescent, outer narrowly lanceolate to lanceolate, narrowly hyaline-scarious at apices, inner ones oblong-ovate, with broadly hyaline to light brown scarious apices. Receptacle hemispherical. Marginal flowers female, with narrow, c. 1 mm long, 2-3-dentate corolla tube. Disc-florets bisexual, with narrowly tubular, c. 2 mm long, 4-toothed corolla tube. Cypselas oblong, 1.2 – 1.5 mm long, angular.

Fl. Per.: October-November.

Type: Inter fl. Irtysch et Kara Karala, C. F. von Ledebour s.n. (LE).

Frequent in narrow to wide slightly moist gorges in sandy gravel dry arid regions in Northern and Central Baluchistan; Distribution: Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Russia (Siberia), Central Asia, Mongolia, Xizang, Himalayas and Karakorum mountains.