Native to Eurasia and the British Isles,[3] the plant and its subspecies are common perennial weeds.

It has green arrowhead-shaped leaves and red-tinted deeply ridged stems, and it sprouts from an aggressive and spreading rhizome.

It has a slender and reddish, upright stem that is branched at the top, reaching a height of 50 centimetres (20 inches).

[5] Native to Eurasia and the British Isles,[3] R. acetosella has been introduced to most of the rest of the Northern Hemisphere.

[6] The plant has been found as an invasive species in Sphagnum peatlands disturbed by peat extraction in southern Patagonia.

[8][9] Ground-feeding songbirds eat the seeds, and larger animals like rabbits and deer browse the greens.