Annual ± erect, 3.5-17 (-30) cm tall. Roots with a purplish dye. Stem branched from the base, yellowish. Hairs stiff, spreading, up to 2.5 mm long, inter-mixed with shorter and softer antrorsely subappresed hairs; longer hairs with a distinct swollen base; basal leaves deciduous at length, 11-40 x 4-7 mm, cauline smaller, oblanceolate, obtuse, margin entire to ± revolute, base attenuate, hairy on both surfaces. Hairs up to 1.4 mm long. Inflorescence terminal and axillary, 30-40 mm long, congested, up to 170 mm is fruit and with flowers less crowded. Flowers yellow, bracteate; bracts leafy but narrower, hairy. Calyx 5-partite, 4-5 mm long, up to 17 mm in fruit. Fruiting calyx ± 5-angled, base c. 4.5 mm broad, prominently nerved; lobes linear, 6-7 mm long in fruit; longer hairs (up to 2.8 mm) stiff, inter-mixed with softer ones. Corolla tubular, infundibuliform, dense pubescent to the outside; tube 10-11 mm long, broader towards the top; lobes, ± obtuse. Anther 0.7-0.8 mm long, attached above the upper half of tube, but in groups at different levels. Style reaching up to upper half of corolla tube, twice forked. Stigmas 4, capitate. Nutlets 2-2.8 mm long, ovoid, beaked; beak tubercled, greyish to greyish-brown.

Fl. Per.: April-May.

Type: Inter Baghdad-Hit, Bruguiera & Oliver s.n. (P).

Distribution: N. Africa, Syria, Caucasus, Iraq, Iran, Turkestan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Pamir Alaj, Tien Shan, China.

Differs from the subspecies macrocalyx (Coss and Kral) Riedl from S. Iran, in which the lower half of fruiting calyx is white tubercled. Z. Ali 5624 from Pishin (Quetta) has a similar calyx