Stem, lvs., and cal. glab. Each flg.-stem brchg. in a cymose manner at the top and bearing 3-?? fls. with pedic. mostly less than 3 cm l.; all green parts minutely papillate. Main stems and brchs. slender, 1-1.5 mm thick at the base, erect or ascending: lvs. lin. semiterete or terete. Fls. bright rosy-purple or magenta; pet. overlapping or touching one another: lvs. semiterete, flat above, rounded on the back: rootstock fleshy, cylindric, brown, bearing a cluster of erect stems 4-6 cm l. or (under cult.) up to 12 cm l.: lvs. spreading 1-2.5 cm x 2-3 mm, 1.5 mm thick, scarcely united at the base, tapering to an acute apex, somewhat bluish-green or greyish-green: pedic. 4-10 mm l. (up to 40 mm l. under cult.): cal.-lobes unequal, 2 of them 5-8 mm l. If.-like, the others 3-4 mm l. with membranous margins and a short acute dorsal point: cor. 14-20 mm br.: pet. 28-36 in 2 series, 6-9 mm l., cuncately lin., obtuse, a few of the inner series filiform: sta. 2 mm l., erect, lax with age, the outer without anth. reddish, the inner whitish with deep yellow anth. and a tuft of hairs at the base of the fil.: top of ov. flat; stig. always erect, 1.5 mm l.: caps. 6 mm br., flat-topped; valves with winged margins and 1 central expanding keel, entirely whitish; loc. open, wingless.
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