General:
Coarse dwarf shrub, mat-forming; stems 4-angled, stiff, ascending to erect, 5-30 cm long, finely hairy.

Leaves:
Evergreen, opposite, distinctly in 4 rows, appressed, nearly concealing the stems, egg- to lance-shaped, 2-6 mm long, deeply grooved on the back, conspicuously finely hairy and minutely fringed on outer surface, usually glabrous or glandular on concave inner surface; unstalked.

Flowers:
Solitary in leaf axils to few near branch tips, nodding on stalks 10-25 mm long, longer than the subtending leaves; corollas white or pinkish, bell-shaped, (4) 5-10 mm long, lobes egg-shaped, almost 1/2 the length of the tube; calyces reddish, egg-shaped, 2-2.5 mm long, entire; stamens not enlarged at the base.

Fruits:
Capsules, globe-shaped, glabrous, about 3 mm wide.

Notes:
Two varieties are recognized in BC:

1. Flowers usually less than 5 (6) mm long, the flower stalks generally less than twice the length of the subtending leaves........................ var. saximontana (Small) C. L. Hitchc.

1. Flowers 6-10 mm long, the flower stalks proportionately longer, more than twice the length of the subtending leaves........................... var. tetragona

Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

If more than one illustration is available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below. Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.

Illustration Source:  The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Cassiope tetragona (L.) D. Don