Herbs, perennial, terrestrial, scapose, sympodial. Roots from globose, ellipsoid, oblong, or forked corms, 0.5–2 mm wide. Stems: glabrous; cauline bracts 2–3, sheathing. Leaves 1(–3), sessile; blade linear, lanceolate, or elliptic-lanceolate, conduplicate, frequently prominently veined. Inflorescences terminal, 1(–3) racemose spikes, 1–25-flowered (ovaries not pedicellate despite appearance), scapose; flowers opening nearly simultaneously to sequentially; floral bracts subulate, lanceolate, or ovate, typically small. Flowers not resupinate, magenta, deep rose pink, pale pink, or white, sometimes fragrant, sessile; dorsal sepal lanceolate; lateral sepals ovate to nearly lanceolate, falcate, apex apiculate to acuminate; petals linear, ovate, elliptic, lanceolate, or oblanceolate, sometimes pandurate, clawed; lip basally hinged, obscurely 3-lobed, middle lobe distally dilated into triangular or broadly rounded lamina, large, lateral lobes 2, small; disc with 2–3 longitudinal lamellae grading distally into brush of hairlike protuberances; protuberances white, yellow, or orange to magenta, elongate, filiform to clavellate; column arcuate, broadly dilated at distal end; anther terminal, green to crimson; pollinia 4 in 2 pairs, soft and mealy; viscidium absent; pollen grains in tetrads. Fruits capsules, erect, cylindric, ellipsoid, or obconic; column persistent in mature capsule.
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Fls nectarless, not resupinate, the lip uppermost; sep and lateral pet nearly alike, spreading, the lateral sep inequilateral, wider than the lateral pet; lip spreading, long-stalked, dilated at the summit and densely bearded along the inner side with long clavate hairs; column elongate, curved, 2-winged distally; anther terminal, with 4 pollinia; perennial from a corm, the slender stem with 1 or 2 basal sheathing scales, a single long grass-like lf near the base, and a short raceme of 2–several fls. 4, e. N. Amer.
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