Herbaceous weedy annual with stems up to 2 feet long, branched from the base and mostly prostrate.
Female flowers of 4 to 5 tepals and intermixed with male flower of 3 to 4 tepals; inflorescences in axillary clusters, sometimes in terminal leafy spikes; leaf blades usually obovate to elliptic-spatulate; fruits open horizontally.
Habitat
In the arid west, usually occur in wetlands, but may occur in non-wetlands. Grows in disturbed areas, even in cracks of sidewalks.
Flower Characteristics
Short clusters of light green flowers develop from the axils of the leaves sometimes appear as terminal spikes.
Leaf and Stem Characteristics
Leaves are up to 1 inch long and taper to a slender petiole. Stems vary in color from whitish-green to pale red. Mostly without hairs.
Fruit and Seed Characteristics
The fruit is a bladder-like capsule that splits open to release a single seed.
Tiny seeds are less than 1/16 inch across; they are dark brown or black, shiny, round in circumference, and somewhat flattened. Seeds can remain viable in the ground for at least ten years.