Plants perennial, mat-forming, strongly long-creeping rhizomatous. Stems: flowering stems ascending from elongate decumbent bases, branched, 15-45 cm, viscid, glandular in distal and mid-stem region, proximal portion with deflexed, long, soft, eglandular hairs, mostly in alternating longitudinal lines; nonflowering shoots horizontal, leafy. Leaves sometimes marces-cent, sessile, highly variable; blade tending to be succulent, pubescent on both surfaces or ± glabrous abaxially except on midrib and margins; leaves of mid and distal stem largest, blade ovate-lan-ceolate to linear-lanceolate or narrowly oblong, 15-42 × 3.5-7 mm, apex acute; proximal leaves smaller, with tufts of small leaves in their axils, blade oblanceolate to linear-oblong, 10-30 × 2-7 mm, often spatulate, apex ± obtuse. Inflorescences lax, 1-12-flowered cymes; bracts glandular-pubescent, proximal bract often foliaceous, broadly lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate; distal bracts lance-elliptic to lanceolate, margins narrow, scarious. Pedicels straight or sometimes curving near apex in fruit, tending to be stout, 10-35 mm, ca. 2-4 times as long as capsules, rarely more, pubescence dense, glandular, viscid. Flowers large and showy; sepals lanceolate, 6-9 mm, margins broad, apex acute, densely glandular-pubescent, viscid; petals broadly oblanceolate, large, 10-15 mm, 2-3 times as long as sepals, apex 2-fid; stamens 10; anthers 0.9-1.2 mm; styles 5. Capsules broadly cylindric, ca. straight, 8-15 × 4-5 mm, 1.5-2 times as long as sepals; teeth 10, erect, margins convolute. Seeds reddish brown, 1-1.5 mm, tuberculate; testa not inflated, tightly enclosing seed. 2n = 72.Cerastium clawsonii Correll, described from Texas, is a synonym of Linum hudsonioides Planchet (R. L. Hartman 1979).
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