It is native to the deserts, hills, and mountain slopes of far eastern California and adjacent sections of western Nevada and Arizona.

It grows in woodland habitat and cracks in rocky limestone slopes above the deserts.

It is an annual herb growing upright or erect no more than 15 centimeters tall, often remaining smaller and compact.

The leaves are no more than a centimeter long with fleshy lance-shaped to bulbous oval blades on short petioles.

The hairy inflorescence is a one-sided curving or coiling cyme of small bell-shaped flowers, each only 3 or 4 millimeters long.