Herbs, perennial, 20-50 cm tall, glabrous. Rhizome horizontal, ± densely clad with persistent fleshy ovate petiolar bases and scales in 2 rows, when dried black-brown. Stems 1 to few, simple or branched, with 3 or 4 scattered leaves. Radical leaves several; petiole 4-12 cm, sheathed; blade pruinose abaxially, green adaxially, deltoid or ovate to nearly orbicular, 3.5-8 × 3-6 cm, bi-to triternate; pinnae petiolulate; pinnules terminal petiolulate, lateral shortly petiolulate to sessile, deeply or slightly 3-9-divided; ultimate segments oblanceolate, obtuse. Cauline leaves lowest long petiolate; upper shortly petiolulate to sessile; blade nearly orbicular to broadly ovate; lowest 4-6 × 5-6 cm, upward gradually smaller, biternatisect to triternatisect, like radical leaves. Raceme 4-8 cm, 10-20-flowered, below distant, above dense; middle and upper bracts oblong, 5-8 mm, entire, lower usually divided, to 15 mm (in subsp. pseudoheterocentra most bracts divided). Pedicel straight, 8-15(-20) mm in flower, 15-20 mm in fruit. Sepals orbicular, minute or up to 1 mm, dentate. Petals pale blue to indigo, rarely white, inner petals whitish; upper petal narrowly ovate, (20-)24-28(-29) mm, apex shortly acuminate, without or with narrow crest; spur cylindric, 13-18 mm; nectary 1/2-3/4 as long as spur; lower petal 12-16 mm with narrow claw abruptly widened into rounded dentate limb, rarely mucronate; inner petals 11-14 mm. Stigma square to rounded, marginal simple papillae: median 2 distinct, lateral broad or confluent; geminate papillae lateral (submarginal) and on well-developed basal lobes. Capsule linear, 15-22 × 1-1.5 mm, 13-17-seeded; style ca. 3 mm. Seeds in 1 row, ca. 1 mm, smooth. Fl. and fr. Apr-Jun.
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