Stem. - Eight to ten inches high, branching, leafy. Leaves. - Alternate, oblong, pale. Flowers. - Greenish-white, small, clustered. Calyx. - Bell or urn-shaped. Corolla. - None. Stamens. - Five. Pistil. - One.

The bastard toadflax is commonly found in dry ground, flowering in May or June. Its root forms parasitic attachments to the roots of trees.