An erect or much-spreading glabrous glaucous perennial herb up to 45 cm tall, although more usually 5-30 cm tall, with several stems arising from a woody rootstock. Stems striate when dry. Stem-leaves alternate, subsessile or shortly petiolate; leaf-blades obovate, less often oblanceolate or suborbicular, (0.5-) 1-1.7 x 0.2-1 cm, obtuse or rounded at the apex, tapered, cuneate or rounded-cuneate at the base, entire or subentire, the margin slightly cartilaginous, obscurely palminerved. Pseudumbel 3-5-rayed, the rays usually once or twice bifid, rarely more; axillary rays 1 or more below the pseudumbel; pseudumbel-leaves 3-5, whorled, obovate-suborbicular, usually slightly shorter and broader than the 'upper stem-leaves; ray-leaves opposite, smaller than the pseudumbel-leaves but otherwise resembling them. Cyathia shortly pedunculate or subsessile. Glands variable, in Baluchistan usualy crescentic, concave on the outer edge and with 2 horns arising from the points, the horns being short, or as long as the width of the gland and simple, channelled, lobulate or laciniate; glands yellowish-ochreous, horns stramineous. Fruit long-pedicellate, the pedicels upto 5 mm long, trilobate-subglobose to trilobate-ellipsoid, 3-3.5 x 3-3.5 mm, smooth, pale green, minutely white-punctate. Styles at first divaricate, later recurved-spreading, 1.5 mm long, united at the base, bifid, the stigmas thickened. Seeds ovoid-ellipsoid, 2.25 x 1.5 x 1.25 mm, shallowly foveolate-malleate-rugulose, pale grey or whitish, dark grey in the depressions, with a small terminal conical caruncle.

Fl. & Fr. Per.: May - Sept.

Holotype: S. Iran, Kuh - Delu, 11 Jun. 1842, Th. Kotschy 487 (W). Isotypes (G ! K !).

Distribution: Iran, Afghanistan. Common on rocks in semidesert, on sandy, stony roadsides and on sandy clay loam near water-channels; 6600'/2000 m. - 9200'/2800 m.

Euphorbia microsciadia is not only variable in gland-form, but in habit also, as will be seen from tabs. 13-15 in ‘Flora Iranica’ 6.1964.