Natural disturbances, such as fire, are also necessary for such a small plant to persist. In the absence of fire, neighboring vegetation will grow taller than dwarf pipewort and shade it out. Fires help to remove competing vegetation. Known populations should be protected from wetland conversion and draining. Natural disturbance regimes should also be reestablished at sites harboring dwarf pipewort.
Leaves are in tufts that appear to grow directly out of the ground.
Each leaf has three distinct veins. There may be up to 25 peduncles per plant. Heads are spherical or hemispherical with a few hairs or hairless. Flowers white to gray-green with both a calyx and corolla. Sepals and petals number either two each or three each.