Annual herb, decumbent or ascending with numerous stems from the base (the stems rather sparingly branched below), or erect and branched, chiefly in the lower half, glabrous or sometimes puberulous when young, mainly about the nodes; stem and branches more or less sulcate and angled, almost smooth to considerably papillose-scabrid. Main leaves of stem and branches glabrous, c. 10–45 × 3–13 (18) mm. including the slender petiole, which varies from slightly shorter to considerably longer than the broadly obovate or less commonly elliptic lamina, rounded-obtuse to slightly emarginate, shortly and feebly mucronate, with or without a purplish black blotch. Flowers green, in dense axillary clusters 4–8 mm. in diam., extending almost to the base of the plant, clusters becoming more approximate above but the superior leaves only gradually and never considerably reduced; male and female flowers intermixed, the males more numerous above. Bracts lanceolate, 1–1.5 mm. long, pale membranous, the arista somewhat shorter than the lamina; bracteoles c. 1.25–3 mm. long, lanceolate-ovate to lanceolate, green along the midrib above, usually more shortly aristate than the bracts, outwardly-curving, shorter than the perianth. Male flowers with 3 elliptic, shortly aristate tepals, c. 1.5–2 mm. long, pale-membranous with a greenish or brownish midrib. Female flowers with 3 tepals, tepals ovate to oblong, (1.5) 2–3 mm. long, frequently broadly greenish above with branched or anastomosing nervation towards the usually more or less outwardly curved apices, acute to somewhat obtuse, shortly but distinctly aristate. Stigmas 3, c. 0.5–0.75 mm. long, somewhat expanded below. Fruit ovoid to shortly obpyriform, shorter than or sometimes subequalling the perianth, circumcissile, strongly rugose, dark when ripe. Seeds compressed, lenticular, 1–1.5 mm. across, finely reticulate over the entire surface, less shining than in many species of the genus.
