The plant is a small gray annual herb that rarely grows above 15 centimetres (6 in) high, and bears minute white flowers.

[2] Anastatica is found in arid areas in the Middle East and the Sahara Desert, including parts of North Africa and regions of Iran, Egypt, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Jordan and Pakistan.

[5][6] A plant with great resistance to desiccation, its branches have the property of contracting with dryness, remaining closed and dry for many years, reopening with moisture or contact with water, regaining all its freshness and beauty.

Moistened again in a later rainy season, the ball uncurls and the plant wakes up from its dormant state, which causes the capsular fruits to open to disperse the seeds.

After it curls, it is easy for the wind itself to lift and drag it large distances, making them obligatory travellers through steppes and deserts crossing the borders of various countries in Asia and disseminating their seeds for all of them.