Muraltia squarrosa is an erect or spreading shrublet or shrub reaching from 30 cm to 1 m in height. The specific epithet, squarrosa, a Latin word meaning scurfy, probably refers to the plant's coarse appearance.

The species distribution is in the southeast of the Western Cape from around George to the southwest of the Eastern Cape around Alexandria. The photo was taken in the Kouga Valley.

The habitat is lower slopes and coastal flats in fynbos and renosterveld where the plants grow in sandy or loamy soils. The species is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2015; Moriarty, 1997; Bond and Goldblatt, 1984; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).