Annual, fine-leaved, loose tufts, not cushion-forming, 1-2 cm high, half-buried in sand. Leaves to 2 cm long, green or red, filiform, crowded at base. Flowering stems slightly < leaves, bright red. Glume-like bracts each enclosing 1- (2) pseudanthia.

Annual, fine-lvd, loose tufts, not cushion-forming, 1–2 cm. high, half-buried in sand. Roots ∞, fine, longer than upper part of plant. Lvs 0.5–2 cm. long, < 0.5 mm. wide, green or red-coloured, crowded at stem base; sheaths transparent, glab., not much wider than lamina. Flowering stems slightly < lvs, c. 0.5 mm. wide, bright red. Glume-like bracts 2, ± opp., ovate, papillose, the outer mucronate, almost completely enclosing the smaller obtuse one; each bract enclosing 1–(2) pseudanthia; hyaline scales 0. ♂ 1 or 0 in a pseudanthium, us. only 1 within each glume-like bract. ♀ 2–6, superposed in 2 series; styles connate at the base.