Small, slow-growing, herbaceous, succulent, perennial herb, very rarely branching from base, not forming clusters, consisting of small to medium-sized, densely foliate, open rosettes, 240-300 mm diam. Roots terete, 4-5 mm diam. Stems usually absent, if rarely present then up to 80 mm long and 45-55 mm diam., erect. Leaves 15-20, rosulate, attenuate, tapering to apex, 120-150 mm long, 60-80 mm broad at base, basally sheathing, distinctly spreading, apex dry, reflexed, dry leaves persistent; upper surface shallowly and broadly canaliculate, flat near base, shiny pale green, spotted, spots pale milky green to whitish, variously shaped and sized, often ± confluent in transverse bands; lower surface convex, uniformly milky green, rarely with longitudinal darker greenish striations, sometimes with small teeth arranged in a central row near leaf apex: margins with a whitish, near-translucent edge, armed with very pungent teeth; teeth brownish orange, recurved like shark's teeth, 3-4 mm long, 3-4 mm apart, ± evenly spaced; leaf sap drying translucent, cut end eventually turning purple. Inflorescence a sparsely branched panicle, 500-800 mm tall, branched at or near lower third with 1 or 2 branches, lowest branches rebranched; 2 or 3 panicles produced consecutively, peduncle and branches below racemes sometimes sterile bracteates, branches subtended at base by thin, scarious, pale brown, many-nerved bracts up to 40 mm long, 15-22 mm broad at base. Peduncle basally planoconvex, 10-20 mm broad at base, matt greenish brown with a soft, whitish bloom, sometimes sterile bracteate. Racemes cylindrical to slightly conical, laxly flowered, flowering portion 250-470 x 70-90 mm, buds suberect, horizontal or subpendulous, somewhat congested at apex, lowest open flowers horizontal to subpendulous, racemes varying in size according to age of plants, larger in old plants, smaller in young plants. Bracts amplexicaul, small, thin, scarious, dirty brownish white, margins creamy white, 8-10 mm long. Pedicels 8-10 mm long. Flowers 33-38 mm long, swollen at base, basal swelling 8-10 mm diam., cylindric-trigonous, usually monochrome; buds with creamy white tips, otherwise uniformly orange or red; mature flowers 8 mm diam. in middle, distinctly trigonously indented above ovary, thence enlarging towards throat and forming wide open mouth; outer segments free for 8-15 mm from apex, free portion with 1 distinct, central, somewhat more intense orange or red section, with 1 mm broad creamy white border and subacute, recurved apex; inner segments broader than outer ones, with 1.0-1.5 mm broad creamy white border and more obtuse, spreading apex, dorsally adnate to outer ones for their greater length. Stamens 6, hypogynous; filaments slightly flattened, pale lemon-yellow, 30-33 mm long, all 6 of equal length, withering concertina-like with age; anthers small, purple-black, versatile, exserted forup to 3 mm. Ovary 6-7 x 3 mm, pale greenish yellow; style 25-30 mm long, minutely capitate; stigma small. Fruit a large capsule, erect, matt green to purple-brown, cylindric-oblong. 25-28 x 14-18 mm, apically truncate, trilocular, dehiscing loculicidally, chartaceous to woody when dry, margins of valves, along which split occurs, broad, white, very conspicuous, for some time wrapped in remains of dry perigone. Seed angled, 2.0 x 2.5 mm, dark brown with pale brown to greyish white wing.
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