An erect heath-like annual plant, 5-10 cm tall, yellowish green in general appearance, plant not brittle, stout fibrous rootstock, branches attached mainly to the rhizomes, 4-12 branches; branching pattern virgate, leaves may or may not subtend branchlets. Stems rhizomatous at subterranean and herbaceous at aerial portion, 0.5-1.2 mm in diameter, erect, stems glabrous, prominently sulcate in transverse section. Leaves well developed, upcurved to adpressed to the branchlets, green, glabrous, without a prominent midrib, veins parallel, apex acute, margins entire, concave or convex to straight. Inflorescences in branchlet axils along the main branches, composed of a dichasial (2 or 3 flowered) cyme, shortly pedicellate; bracts and bracteoles leaf-like; bracts fleshy, 2.5-5 x 0.5-1 mm, linear-lanceolate, margins entire, green, acute at tips, longer than the flower, straight; bracteoles bract-like but smaller, 1.5-3 x 0.5-1 mm; flowers campanulate, green, 1-2.5 x 0.5-1.5 mm, 4-merous, perianth lobe external glands absent, perianth lobe segments 0.6-1.4 x 0.5-0.8 mm, lobes ovate to triangular, obtuse or subacute at tips, not distinctly uncinate, somewhat lobulate; lobe tube about 0.4 mm; male and female plants well differentiated. Male plants: branches more slender than female plants, internodes wider than female plants, 2.5-8 mm; leaves sparse, not imbricate, narrower than in female plants, linear to acicular, 5-10 mm x 0.5-1 mm; inflorescences lax; hypanthium tube quite short to non-existent; stamen tetramerous, staminal filaments exserted at the junction of hypanthium and perianth lobe tubes, about 0.2 mm. Female plants: branches more robust, internodes short, 1.5-2.5 mm; leaves denser than in male counterpart, imbricate, linear, 7.5-13 x 0.4-1 mm; inflorescences a 3-flowered cyme; hypanthium tube length less than the perianth lobe tubes; style short, about 0.2 mm. Fruit a nutlet, ovoid, green, attached to the branch by a swollen pedicel to form a white attenuated elaiosome, 1.5-2.5 x 1-2 mm, conspicuously 10-ribbed and prominent reticulate veins between the longitudinal ribs, capped with green persistent perianth lobe segments, shorter relative to the fruit length.
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Annual; tap-root stout; stems numerous, especially in male plants, arising from the apex of the rootstock, erect or spreading, sparingly branched above, 3-6 in. long, ribbed, floriferous almost throughout, subglabrous, leaves at the base of plants narrowly linear-lanceolate or acicular, with a distinct rib, 3-6 lin. long, conspicuous and gradually replaced by linear bracts in female and abruptly by subulate bracts in male plants; male plants: inflorescences simple or branched; bracts and bracteoles ovate-lanceolate or subulate, navicular, curved, acute, slightly keeled, about equal to or shorter than the flowers, 1/2 lin. long, margins translucent, scarcely scabrous, verruculose; flowers sessile in axillary glomerules of 3-flowered cymules; perianth 3/8 lin. long; segments spreading 1/4 lin. long; female plants: inflorescences simple or branched, rather lax; stems usually floriferous in the upper parts; bracts leaf-like, 1 1/2-2 1/2 lin. long, linear or acicular, abruptly acute, erect or spreading, keeled, margins and keel membranous, subscabridulous; bracteoles 5/8 lin. long, about equal in length to the flowers or shorter, folded, sharply keeled; flowers usually solitary, lateral flowers sometimes developing later, shortly pedunculate; perianth about 1/4 lin. long; segments 1/6 lin. long, margins more or less undulate; style 1/8 lin. long; fruit globose, 1/2 lin. in diam., prominently reticulate; pedicel 1/2 lin. Iong.
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