This plant is common in the tropics, both in ruderal and cultivated environments. It is a plant native to the Americas; it is currently distributed from the southern United States to Argentina. Melochia pyramidata is an erect plant, 30 to 90 cm high. The main stem is slender, with oblique branches, non hairy or with stellate hairs on the younger branches. The leaves are simple, alternate, bright green and not hairy, elongated with serrated edge. The flowers are in groups opposite to the leaves. They are purplish or mauve and tinted yellow at the base. The fruit is pyramid-shaped and slightly swollen, pointed at the top and covered with stellate hairs.