Dry, open, sandy, ± barren ground; oak and pine savanna, especially in areas where the sand has been lightly disturbed.

Leaves and scape range from nearly glabrous to, usually, with ± dense gland-tipped hairs. Plants start blooming in late spring–early summer (May–June) and continue (if not dried up) to produce new scapes till late in the summer, even September. Because of the long blooming season, it is usually possible to find flowering and fruiting scapes at the same time, the latter revealing the very characteristic pappus of few scales and few bristles.