Delicate, annual, erect, up to 8 cm long, greyish green, glabrous herb, stem branched from base with simple branching, terminating in a flower. Basal leaves 0.3-0.6 x 0.1-0.2 cm, apparently not rosulate, spathulate or obovate, obtuse-subacute (acute), with cartilaginous margin. Inflorescence solitary. Flowers erect, infundibuliform, up to 1.5 cm long, subsessile-pedicellate. Calyx 0.5-1.0 cm long, tube double the length of lobes, 0.5-0.8 cm long, winged or carinate; lobes 0.05-0.1 x 0.025-0.075 cm, lanceolate, margin membranous, entire, acute, sinuses between lobes obtuse-acute. Corolla 0.5-1.5 cm long, tube 0.6-1.0 cm long, much longer than the lobes; lobes 0.1-0.2 x 0.025-0.05 cm, lanceolate, acute, entire; plicae short, oval, entire, irregularly toothed at top. Stamens inserted, filaments very slender and thread like, anthers basifixed. Style very short; stigma bibbed, coiled; ovary 03-05 x 0.05-0.15 cm, oblanceolate, gradually narrowed at base, stipitate up to 2.0 mm long, nectaries at the base of stipe. Capsule stipitate, oblanceolate, 0.1-0.175 x 0.05-0.075 cm, gradually narrowed at base to the size of pedicel. Seeds minute, oval, reticulate, acute at apex, angled.

Fl. Per.: July-September.

Lectotype: Habitat in Siberia. D. Amman (fide Omer and Qaiser, l.c. 1993).

Distribution: Central Asia, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Turkey.

An Irano-Turanian (Central Asian) element, which extends from Soviet Central Asia westward to Turkey, eastward into Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan (Chitral, Kurram Valley). Chitral and Kurram Valley seems to be its eastern most limit. It does not extend further into Kashmir and Nepal (Agrawal, 1984; Garg, 1987).

Grows in wet grass lands as prostrate to suberect annual herb, at an elevation of 7500-14000 ft., in alpine and subalpine regions.

Ciminalis aquatica (L.) Zuyev is confused with Ciminalis prostrate (Haenke) 'Love & Love. Boissier (1879) had also confused it with Ciminalis prostrate (Haenke) Love & Love but overlooked the key characters of Ciminalis aquatica (L.)Zuyev which has sessile to subsessile flowers and the calyx lobes were always green as well as unfleshy habit. Whereas, Ciminalis prostrate (Haenke) Love & Love possessed rusty brown calyx lobes, the flowers were distinctly pedicellate as well as fleshy habit. In fact, Boissier (1879) has mixed up both the taxa.