T. oblongatum has petioles with narrow wings, white on outer and pink on inner leaves. The leaves are of a characteristic rather olive green with short, rather rounded, side-lobes and a obtuse to rounded end-lobe, longer on inner leaves (heterophyllous). The flowering capitulum is small and the exterior bracts unusually short for the section, usually <10 mm long, strongly recurved and usually slightly suffused pinkish.