Annual or biannual trailing subshrub, stems, leaves and calyx tinged red, covered by fine, glistening, bead-like papillae; branches angled. Leaves opposite at base, ovate or spathulate, 1–5 cm long, 0.5–1.5(–3) cm wide. Flowers leaf-opposed, shortly pedicellate; ovary inferior; receptacle obconic to oblong, 5–7 mm diam.; sepals spathulate, 6–8 mm long, distinctly keeled, tinged red, the inner 2 broader with membranous margins; staminodes white, often yellowish in bud, sometimes tinged pink, subequal to sepals. Capsule obconic, angled, 5–7 mm long, sepals reflexing and opening to c. 15 mm diam.; seeds brown, D-shaped, c. 0.5 mm long, tuberculate. Flowers Aug.–Feb.
MuM, VVP, GipP. Also naturalised WA, SA, NSW. Native to South Africa.
In Victoria it was originally collected at Corio Bay and Coode Island near the mouth of the Yarra River between 1901 and 1911, and was presumed extinct until rediscovered at Port Melbourne in 2010, where found in weed dominated 'wasteland'. Probably introduced at both sites through shipping from South Africa
