Plants 50-80(-160) mm high, including leaves. Corm with fibrous, netted tunics, with small cormlets at base; non-flowering plants with long, unbranched stolons with terminal corms or young plants. Stem underground or reaching shortly above ground level, without basal fibrous collar, suberect or inclined, lightly hairy, often with cormlets in underground axils. Leaves linear to lanceolate, exceeding stem, usually fairly narrow, 3-10(-15) mm wide, pleated, softly hairy. Spike crowded, decumbent, 2-to 4-flowered; bracts usually entirely green or with brown tips, finely to velvety hairy, 15-30(-40) mm long, inner ± as long as or slightly shorter than outer, divided to base. Flowers borne close to ground level, zygomorphic, blue to mauve, occasionally lilac, with white to cream-coloured markings on lower lateral tepals edged in darker blue to purple, sweetly or spicy fragrant; perianth tube obliquely funnel-shaped, 10-19 mm long; tepals unequal, dorsal 28-45 x 10-12 mm, lower tepals joined to upper laterals for 2-4 mm and to one another for 2-4 mm, 20-30 mm long. Stamens unilateral; filaments arcuate, 13-16 mm long; anthers linear, 6-8 mm long. Ovary smooth or sparsely hairy on ribs distally; style dividing opposite anther tips; style 4-6 mm long, expanded in upper 1/.
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Acaulescent, cormous geophyte, 5-8(-16) cm. Leaves usually narrow, occasionally broad, longer than stem, obliquely lanceolate, hairy. Flowers zygomorphic, blue to mauve with white to pale yellow markings, fragrant, inner bracts divided to base, ovary smooth.
A bulb plant. The flowers are blue or purple.
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