Conophytums are about the most reduced flowering plants in existence. Some species exist only as a single pair of fused succulent leaves; others are multiheaded. Each head is shed and regenerated every year.

Conophytum obcordellum subsp. obcordellum grows usually in multiheaded clusters forming a small mat or mound 20-30 mm high. Each head is 8-20 mm in diameter with a small fissure on its upper surface from which the flower will emerge in autumn. The upper surface is usually a pale blue-green, grass-green or yellow-green, always decorated with a multitude of dark green-black lines and dots; the colour and intensity of these markings vary from one locality to another. In spring, as temperatures rise and humidity decreases, the plants descend into dormancy, withdrawing all the life from the leaf bodies and redirecting the sap and nutrients into new leaf bodies which then become sheathed over summer in the now dried remains of the old leaves. They remain in this state of dormancy, protected from the harsh desiccating summer conditions until autumn, when a single fragrant flower will appear from the fissure in the leaf surface. The creamy white flowers are nocturnal, meaning they close during the day and open at night to emit a sweet fragrance; the petals are up to 12 mm long. The fruits consist of a single 4-6-locular capsule containing many tiny dark hard seeds about the size of a grain of sand.

There are four subspecies of C. obcordellum: subsp. obcordellum which occurs in the greater Cedarberg area; subsp. stenandrum which occurs in southern Namaqualand; subsp. rolfii from the Eland's Bay area and subsp. ceresianum from the western parts of the Tanqua (Ceres) Karoo. Three of these are illustrated below, however, only C. obcordellum subsp. obcordellum will be described here.

It is not known how long these plants can exist in the wild, possibly for many decades, but in cultivation these plants can become ancient with the right care.