Herbs annual, (8-)15-40(-50) cm tall, with multicellular glandular trichomes to 0.1 mm, these sometimes mixed with simple ones to 3 mm. Stems erect, branched above. Basal leaves often withered by flowering; petiole 3-15 mm; leaf blade lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, 2.5-5 cm × 3-10 mm, densely glandular, sparsely pilose or glabrous, base cuneate or attenuate, margin sinuate-dentate, dentate, or rarely pinnatifid, apex acute. Cauline leaves similar to basal ones, progressively narrower upward, becoming linear or filiform, subsessile, entire. Fruiting pedicels (2-)3-5(-8) mm. Sepals 4-5 × ca. 1 mm. Petals purple or whitish, oblanceolate, 7-10 × 0.5-1.2 mm; claw 3.5-5 mm. Filaments 3-6 mm; anthers ovate, ca. 0.5 mm. Fruit linear, dimorphic, 2-3.5 mm wide; lowermost fruit terete, 2.5-4.5(-6) cm, corky, indehiscent; upper fruit flattened, (4-)5-8 cm, leathery, dehiscent; style (2.5-)3-8 mm, longer on upper fruit. Seeds brown, oblong or suborbicular, 2.5-4 × 2-2.5 mm; wing 0.3-1 mm. Fl. Apr-Jun, fr. May-Aug. 2n = 14.