It is a perennial, submerged aquatic plant that grows entirely underwater.The leaves are basal, narrow, linear ribbon-shaped and serrated along the margins. The plant does not have distinct stems above the waterline. Instead, it sends out long, slender rhizomes that anchor the plant in the substrate and give rise to the basal rosette of leaves. The flowers are small, monoecious, inconspicuous, and lack petals.