Sulfur buckwheat has rather thick succulent stems that form low mats on the ground. The leaves are oval to spoon-shaped, green on the top and grayish wooly on the bottom, and without ocreas. The flowers are borne in compact clusters on erect stems, 5-40 cm tall, and are bright yellow, often tinged with red. The seeds are triangular, as in most members of the Polygonaceae. Sulfur buckwheat grows on dry gravelly ridges and slopes from middle to high elevations.