Arenaria polytrichoides Edgew. in Fl. Brit. India 1: 237. 1874.

Herbs, densely caespitose, forming hemispherical 5 - 10 cm high tufts; stems densely compressed, cylindrical, 2 - 10 cm long, together with leaves ca 6.5 mm in diam. Leaves densely imbricate, sessile, recurved, linear-lanceolate, broadly sheathing, scarious and ciliate at base, narrowed and aristate at apex, 3 - 6 x 1 - 1.25 mm, thick along margins, bright green, rigid, pungent. Flowers minute, terminal, subsessile; pedicels lengthening up to 4 mm in fruit. Sepals broadly elliptic, obtuse at apex, concave, ca 2.5 x 1.5 mm, not scarious-margined, glabrous, indistinctly 3-nerved. Petals obovate, narrowed at base, ca 4 x 1.75 mm. Filaments ca 3 mm long. Styles 3. Capsules broadly ovoid, shortly 6-valved, equalling sepals, coriaceous; seeds small, black, angular.

Fl. June - Aug.; Fr. Aug. - Sept.

Distrib. India: Alpine Himalayas, 4200 - 4600 m, on rocks. Himachal Pradesh and Sikkim.

Pakistan, Nepal and Bhutan.