Plants 5-50 cm. Inflorescences , excluding peduncle, 1-4.5 cm; bracteoles 1/2-3/4 as long as pedicels. Flowers : pedicel straight and spreading to ascending in fruit, 1-3 mm; corolla 5-6 mm, spur 1-1.5 mm; petals pink or deep pink near base, deep pink or purple apically. Capsules subglobose, frequently longer than broad, 1.7-2.5 mm diam., slightly wrinkled or shallowly pitted. 2 n = 32.

Flowering spring. Open, disturbed places

The description here is taken in part from Flora of the Great Plains (Great Plains Flora Association 1986), where the specific epithet is misspelled 'vaillentii,' supplemented by measurements from specimens of European origin in the Harvard University Herbaria.