Herbs annual, (2-)8-25(-40) cm tall. Trichomes malpighiaceous throughout. Stems erect, simple or branched above. Basal leaves not rosulate, soon withered; lowermost and middle cauline leaves with petioles 3-10(-15) mm, rarely subsessile; leaf blade oblanceolate, oblong, or oblong-spatulate, (0.8-)1-4(-5) cm × (1-)2-5(-8) mm, base attenuate or cuneate, margin entire, apex obtuse. Upper cauline leaves sessile, usually smaller than basal. Racemes corymbose, densely flowered, ebracteate, elongated considerably in fruit. Fruiting pedicels erect, 0.5-1.5(-2) mm, stout, about as wide as fruit. Sepals linear-oblong, 2.2-3 × ca. 0.5 mm, not saccate. Petals yellow, linear, 3-4(-5) × 0.3-0.6 mm, apex obtuse; claw not differentiated from limb. Filaments yellow, 1.5-2.5(-3) mm; anthers oblong, ca. 0.5 mm. Ovules 16-40 per ovary. Fruit narrowly linear, terete, (1.3-)1.7-2.2(-2.5) cm × 0.7-0.9 mm, somewhat torulose, erect or ascending, straight; valves with obscure midvein, outside with malpighiaceous trichomes, inside glabrous; style stout, 0.5-1(-1.5) mm, cylindric, sparsely pubescent; stigma entire. Seeds oblong, 0.8-0.9 × 0.4-0.5 mm. Fl. May-Jun, fr. Jun-Jul. 2n = 18.

Grasslands; 700-4000 m. Xinjiang [Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan; SW Asia].