Honckenya peploides is a small, subdioecious, spreading plant, forming patches on sand and shingle above the high water mark of beaches.

The leaves grow in opposite pairs and are fleshy with membranous margins, pale yellowish-green and ovate, oblong or lanceolate, usually with pointed tips.

They grow in the upper leaf axils and have ovate to lanceolate sepals, greenish-white petals of about the same length, and three styles.

They found that shoots growing near the edge of the clumps had higher photosynthetic efficiency and chlorophyll content.

The seeds are small in size and time-consuming to gather; they can be ground up and added to flour or used as a garnish.