General:
Annual herb from a slender taproot; stems decumbent to ascending, several, freely branching but tending to root at the nodes and so may persist from 1 year to the next, 3-20 cm long.

Leaves:
Basal leaves lacking; stem leaves linear to broadly oblanceolate, opposite, 4-15 mm long, 1-7 mm wide, tapering to short stalks or unstalked.

Flowers:
Inflorescence of loose, terminal racemes with 3-7 flowers on slender, recurved stalks 3-10 (20) mm long; corollas white, 1-2 mm long, fused about 1/2 their length, 5-lobed, the lobes usually unequal; sepals 2, round, 1-1.5 mm long; stamens 3, joined to the corolla tubes.

Fruits:
Capsules, egg-shaped, flattened, 1.5 mm long; seeds black, round, 0.7-1.2 mm long, with numerous small projections, appendage round or flat.

Notes:
Recognition of infraspecific taxa within this variable species complex does not appear warranted at this time (McNeill 1975).

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:
Claytonia fontana (L.) R.J. Davis
Montia dipetala Suksd.
Montia fontana subsp. amporitana auct. non Sennen
Montia fontana subsp. chondrosperma (Fenzl) Walter
Montia fontana subsp. fontana L.
Montia fontana subsp. variabilis
Montia fontana var. lamprosperma (Cham.) Fenzl
Montia fontana var. tenerrima (A. Gray) Fernald & Wiegand
Montia fontana var. variabilis (Walters) Kozhevn.
Montia hallii (A. Gray) Greene
Montia lamprosperma Cham.
Montia minor C.C. Gmel.
Montia verna Neck.