[5]: 519  The edges of the petals lack the fringe of hairs seen in L. punctata, and the hairy, narrow triangular sepals have a conspicuous orange margin.

Measuring 5 - 12 cm long, the entire-margined leaves are opposite or 3-4-whorled, ovate to lanceolate and spotted with translucent orange glands.

The stem is round or square in cross-section, downy, and usually solid and pith-filled[7] The generic name Lysimachia means ‘ending strife’, derived from Lysimachus, a King of Thrace, Asia Minor and Macedon, also an army leader under Alexander the Great.

Although the seeds only appear to have a maximum viability of 3 years when stored in the soil, the plant can spread by vegetative means from rhizomes over extensive areas, sometimes to the detriment of other species.

[12] It remains in a vegetative state for some years before blooming, so that flowering stands of the plant indicate that it has long been present in that area.