[4] Physaria filiformis is an annual herb producing several slender, branching stems up to 25 centimeters (10 inches) tall, growing erect or drooping.

The plant is a winter annual, sprouting and forming a basal rosette of leaves in the fall and then producing stems and flower the following spring.

[5] Physaria filiformis grows in limestone glades and outcrops of bare bedrock in southwestern Missouri and northwestern Arkansas.

Fire is the mechanism that keeps these habitats open and free of large and woody vegetation that shade out small annuals.

When fire is prevented, woody vegetation moves in, covering the glades and blocking the light from reaching this small plant.

Extensive surveys located more occurrences and many of these were put under the protection of a number of agencies, including the National Park Service and The Nature Conservancy.

Conservation activities include protection of the habitat in public areas, prescribed burns to replace the natural fire regime, and reduced use of herbicides.