[2][3][4][1] The genus Leucospora, from the Greek for "white-seeded", was named in 1834 by English botanist Thomas Nuttall.

[2] It has since been placed in several different genera, including Leucospora, Stemodia, Sutera, and Conobea, the latter from which several of its vernacular names originate.

[2] Obi-wan conobea is a small plant, growing to around 20 cm (8 in) tall, with glandular-hairy foliage.

[2][7] The core of its native range is the midwestern United States, including most of Illinois and Missouri, extending west to Nebraska, south to Texas, and east to Ohio, with scattered occurrences beyond, where it may be adventive.

[9] It grows on sandy, gravelly, and marly soils in ditches, swales, and receding shorelines of rivers and streams.