Slender glab. to glabrate, eglandular, lax herb; stems slender, up to 6 dm. long, prostrate and rooting in basal part, then ascending, sparingly branched. Lvs on short petioles; lamina membr., pungent-tasting, 5-10-(15) × 1-3-(4) cm., lanceolate, acuminate, minutely serrulate; ochreae delicate, ± 1·5 cm. long, sparsely hairy, mouth obliquely truncate, ciliate; cilia (1)-2-(5) mm. long. Infl. of simple spikes (2)-3-5 cm. long on slender peduncles up to 10 mm. long. Fls ± 2 mm. diam., 2-3 per cluster; bracts narrow, truncate, ciliate. Tepals us. 5, oblong, glab., reddish to whitish; stamens us. 5, styles 2-branched. Fr. lenticular to subplano-convex, margined, ± 2 mm. long, including style base; dark blackish brown, ± glossy.

n = 20

Annual or short-lived perennial herb, glabrous or glabrate; stems prostrate or decumbent, rooting at the lower nodes, sparingly branched; roots rather slender. Lvs on main stems and branches similar; petioles short or lvs subsessile. Lamina to 15 × 4 cm, lanceolate, often with dark markings above, entire or minutely serrulate, glabrous or sometimes with appressed hairs on midrib above and below, copiously dotted with glands below; margins appressed-ciliate; base cuneate to rounded; apex acuminate. Ochreae c. 1.5 cm long, green or pinkish, obliquely truncate, not flared towards apex, long-ciliate. Fls 1-4 in whorls forming simple or few-branched, terminal or axillary racemes; racemes erect or slightly curved, 1.5-8 cm long, sometimes very slender and whorls distant, sometimes wider, cylindric, and densely flowered; peduncles slender, > upper lvs; pedicels enveloped or slightly exserted from bracts; bracts truncate, ciliate or glabrous. Perianth 2-2.5 mm long, deep pink to whitish, eglandular, accrescent; segments ± elliptic, imbricate. Nut 1.7-2.5 mm long, biconvex to almost plano-convex, blackish, ± glossy.