Plant 1-3 m. high with the inflorescence extended. Leaves 1 m. long, coriaceous; sheaths suborbicular, 9 cm. long, entire, dark brown, covered below with a castaneous membrane, densely subfloccose-lepidote above; blades ligulate, scarcely or not constricted at base, acute or broadly rounded with a broad triangular apiculus, 35-70 mm. wide, glabrous above, densely lepidote beneath, densely spinose-serrate toward base with stout black teeth to 11 mm. long. Scape decurved, 13 mm. thick, sparsely tomentose-lepidote. Scape-bracts linear-lanceolate, acuminate, 2 dm. long, coarsely spinose-serrate, subchartaceous, bright red, pale-lepidote. Inflorescence densely bipinnate or the lowest fertile branches divided, cylindric, to 1 m. long and 9 cm. thick, sterile at base and apex and the apices of the remaining spikes or rarely the whole inflorescence. Pri-mary bracts slenderly spiniform from a small triangular base, 3 cm. long, dark brown. Spikes laxly and distichously 2-to 4-flowered. Rhachis 25 mm. long, terete. Floral bracts subreni-form, asymmetric, 1 cm. long, forming a tubular sheath about the base of the calyx, green, prominently nerved, bearing a slender dark brown terminal spine to 25 mm. long, those toward the apex of the spike sterile and gradually reduced to just the spine. Flowers sessile. Sepals very asymmetric, subelliptic, obtuse, 16 mm. long, entire, pale yellow-green, free. Petals obtuse, 3 cm. long, pale greenish yellow, bearing 2 fimbriate scales at base. Ovary much enlarged in fruit, the epigynous tube large. Ovules caudate, borne near top of cell.
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