Perennial herb with procumbent to ascending or erect stems from a thick woody rootstock; stems to 35 cm long, puberulous or densely so. Leaves sparsely uniformly puberulous on lamina, denser on midrib; lamina ovate to elliptic or oblong, largest 4-12 x 1-3 cm; margin with (2-)8-20 small and/or large spreading to forward-directed teeth; lateral veins usually white above. Spikes 4.5-14(-25) cm long, 10-40-flowered; peduncle (1.5-)2.5-16 cm long, puberulous or densely so, with (2-)3-5 pairs of sterile bracts aggregated towards apex of peduncle (rarely evenly distributed), often also with a single pair near base, uppermost pair similar to fertile; fertile bracts dark green, uniformly puberulous or densely so or sericeous-puberulous; lower and middle elliptic-obovate, 25-42 x 15-22 mm of which the recurved triangular spinose tip 7-17 mm, on each side with 5-8 teeth of which the longest (1-)3-7 mm. Bracteoles 16-21 x 1.5-3 mm, lanceolate to narrowly elliptic, cuspidate, densely puberulous. Sepals densely uniformly puberulous; dorsal 18-23 mm long, 3-5-veined from base, ovate-elliptic or broadly so with a short subligulate apical part narrowing slightly to a rounded or truncate irregularly toothed apex (rarely acute with 1-3-toothed apex), apical part scarious; ventral 14-18 mm long, 2(-5)-veined from base, broadly ovate-elliptic, narrowing gradually to an apex with 2 triangular mucronate teeth 2-3 mm long (rarely also with 1-2 central teeth); lateral 8-11 mm long, broadly ovate, acuminate. Corolla white, 24-33 mm long of which the tube 5-7 mm; limb spathulate, 13-17 mm wide, central lobe wider than long, truncate to retuse, narrowed at base; filaments 8-10 mm long, sparsely glandular; appendage 2-4 mm long, oblong, rounded; anthers 4-5 mm long. Capsule and seed not seen.
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