It is an herbaceous perennial growing to 1.2 m (4 ft) tall and wide, with mounds of branching stems covered in clouds of tiny white flowers in summer (hence the common name "baby's breath").

[2][3][4] Its natural habitat is on the Steppes in dry, sandy and stony places, often on calcareous soils (gypsophila = "chalk-loving").

Numerous cultivars have been selected, of which 'Rosenschleier'[5] (with pale pink double flowers) has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

[6] Gypsophila paniculata is much used in the floristry trade (where it is often simply called "gyp") providing an effective backdrop for larger or more structured blooms.

[9] It is classed as an invasive species in places around the Great Lakes, such as the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore[10] and the Chicago region,[11] in the Pacific Northwest,[12] and California where it is a declared noxious weed.