The species is named after Christian Friedrich Ecklon, a Danish botanical collector who explored the flora of the Cape in the early 1800s.

[4] Dimorphotheca ecklonis is an evergreen, perennial dwarf shrub that can grow up to 1 meter (3 ft 3 in) tall.

[2] The leaves measure 13 to 25 by 2.5 to 10 centimeters (5.12 to 9.84 by 0.98 to 3.94 in) and are glandular fluffy, sessile, elliptical, slightly succulent, narrow obovate, and entire or serrated.

[2] It is native to a small area in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, around Uitenhage and Humansdorp and is found on wet grass and in river beds at altitudes up to 300 meters (980 ft).

It prefers subtropic biomes but has been introduced into the Azores, California, Mauritius, New South Wales, Queensland, Réunion, Spain, Tunisia, Victoria, and Western Australia.

[2] The plants grow fast and thrive best in full sun, in poor to moderately fertile, well-drained, sandy soil.