Perennial, up to 30 cm tall, erect to spreading or ascending, ± hairy with simple short hairs; rootstock branched, densely covered with ± sheathing bases of the radical leaves. Radical leaves densely rosulate, long petioled, ovate or elliptic, 3-7 cm long, 1-2.5 cm broad, including 1.5-3 cm long petiole, entire or obscurely distantly toothed; cauline leaves lanceolate, elliptic-ovate to linear-lanceolate, 1-4.5 cm long, 0.3-1.5 cm broad, sessile, usually semiamplexicaul, entire or obscurely toothed; all leaves fleshy, ± glabrous, acute to subobtuse. Racemes 15-30-flowered, ebracteate, up to 7(-10) cm long in fruit. Flowers c. 3 mm across, white; pedicel up to 5 mm long in fruit, filiform. Sepals c.1 mm long, 0.6 mm broad, oblong, obtuse. Petals c. 2 mm long, 1 mm broad, spathulate with rounded apex. Stamens 6, c. 1 : 1.3 mm long, with minute anthers. Siliculae c. 3 mm long, 3.5 mm broad, ovate-elliptic, obscurely notched at the apex with subsessile, short, capitate stigma, hardly within the notch; valves glabrous, often conspicuously reticulate-veined; septum c. 0.5 mm broad; seed c. 1 mm long, ovate-elliptic, reddish-brown.

Fl. Per.: April-June.

Type: Described from Russia, Siberian desert, in saline habitat, Martini & Gmelin.

Distribution: S.E. Europe, Russia, C. & W. Asia to W. Pakistan.

It is doubtful if the size of plant with leaf variations would help in separating infra specific ranks. However, our plants belong to the type race, cartilagineum.