[6] This species is native to coastal areas of the Cape Provinces and KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, and of Mozambique.

[3] This plant is a perennial herb with thick, ribbed, decumbent stems growing in clumps up to 30 centimeters tall.

[2][8] The white-haired leaves have oval blades up to 6 centimeters long by 5 wide, with smooth or toothed edges.

[2] This plant is a pioneer species of sandy coastal habitat types, such as dunes.

This plant and its associate Gazania rigens form nabkhas that are inhabited by a variety of small animals such as nematodes and the sand flea Talorchestia capensis.

[9] The ability of the plant to colonize bare sand has helped it take hold on the Australian coastline.