Annual herb, erect or with decumbent lower branches, 7–60 cm.. Stem generally rather stout, simple or branched below the middle, yellowish, sulcate-angular, glabrous below and with rather long ± flexuous multicellular hairs especially in the flowering region, or glabrous throughout.. Leaves glabrous or with scattered short hairs on the lower surface of the veins near the base, long-petiolate (petioles 0.5–5 cm. long, sometimes exceeding the lamina); lamina broadly ovate to elliptic-oblong, 1.2–4 × 0.6–3 cm., cuneate to shortly attenuate at the base, obtuse to broadly retuse at the apex.. Flowers in compact spherical sessile axillary clusters to ± 1 cm. in diameter, scattered thickly along the stem and branches; ♂ and ♀ flowers intermixed.. Bracts and bracteoles similar, small, oblong with a green midrib which is at most minutely percurrent; bracteoles shorter than the perianth.. Perianth-segments 3, 1–1.25 mm.; ♂ elliptic-oblong and usually apiculate, ♀ oblong and obtuse; both with a central green vitta ceasing below the apex.. Stigmas 2, short and rigid.. Fruiting heads ± 8 mm. in diameter, rigidly stellate with the divergent capsules.. Capsule 2.75–3.25 mm., rather woody, dehiscent, the persistent base conical and longitudinally sulcate, the lid subconical, also sulcate below but smooth at and below the style-base, point of junction of lid and base ± cristate-crenulate.. Seeds ellipsoid, 1.25–1.5 mm., slightly compressed, black, shining, very feebly reticulate.. Fig. 6.
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A herb. It can be spreading or lie along the ground. The leaves are greenish-brown. The leaf stalks are long. The leaf blade is about 5 cm long. The flowering heads are round. They are in clusters in the axils of leaves. The fruit are arranged in a star shaped pattern.
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