Annual, 50 cm or more tall, branched. Branches green or greyish-green, dense white hairs up to 1 mm long and arising from a bulbous base; Leaves petiolate; petiole up to 4.5 cm long. Lamina 15-60 (-75) x 10-40 mm, elliptic-ovate to obovate, hairy on both surfaces; hairs white, appressed, arising from bulb base, nerves impressed on upper surface. Inflorescence terminal, 3-14 cm long with close set biseriate flowers. Calyx sessile, persistent, 2.5-3.0 mm long, lobes c. 2 mm long, linear, hairy on the outside, glabrous within; throat constricted. Corolla lobes ± orbicular to oblong, c. 1.2 mm long, sinuses often with appends Anthers c. 1.1 mm long, elongated, branched at base, apex acutish, attached c. 0.7 mm from the corolla tube base. Stigma basally 2-fid. Nutlets 1.8-2 mm long, ovoid, retrorsely dense pilose and minutely verrucose to rugulose on back, brown.

Fl. Per.: April, later at higher elevations.

Type: ‘Penin. Dardscha’, Coll. Ignot. (LE! iso. K).

Distribution: Trans Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Russia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India.

Differing from the type variety in corolla tube constricted at throat, stigmatic appendage not deeply bibbed and hairy nutlets.

The taxon is variable throughout its geographical range in leaf size and length of inflorescence. The sinuses between corolla lobes are sometimes appendaged (Sultanul Abedin & A. Hussain 9634; Harsukh 15406). Differs from the type variety in the corolla tube which is constricted at the throat, the stigma which is obscurely 2-fid and densely pilose (not glabrous or subglabrous) nutlets. Widely distributed from sea level to 1829 m.