Herbs usually annual, to 40 cm tall, glabrous. Stem branched. Leaves subsessile, spatulate or lanceolate to elliptic-oblong, entire or toothed to parted, papery. Flowers in terminal racemes; white or light yellow, or orange-red when cultivated, very fragrant. Sepals 6, narrowly spatulate, 2.5-4 mm, shorter than pedicel. Petals 6, clawed at base, lower 2 entire, lateral 2 digitate, upper 2 digitate with few segments and equaling sepals. Stamens 17-20; filaments subulate. Carpels 3. Capsule pendulous, subglobose or urceolate, 3-angled, ca. 1 cm. Seeds black, shiny, 2-2.5 mm; testa rugose. 2n = 12.

Cultivated for ornament. Shanghai Shi, Taiwan, Zhejiang (Hangzhou Shi) [native to S Greece (Gavdos Island) and NE Libya; widely cultivated and naturalized elsewhere].