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An orchid that grows in the soil. It grows 85 cm high. It has small fleshy tubers. These are 1.5 cm long by 0.8 cm wide. There are often 2 leaves on non flowering shoots and these are narrow and 30 cm long. They are folded along their length. The leaves on the flowering shoots are sword shaped and 5-20 cm long. They are red at the base. The flowering stalk is 18 cm long. The flowers are pink, brown, red or purple.
Terrestrial herb, up to 0.6 m high. Petals obovate-oblong, truncate. Sepals 5.0-7.5 mm long, dorsal sepal galeate with a hooked spur. Lip linear to narrowly elliptic. Flowers purple.
Spur slender, 8–13 mm long, cylindric from a conical base, horizontal at the base but soon sharply deflexed (apparently ascending at base because galea faces down).
Fertile shoots 30–60 cm tall; cauline leaves imbricate, mostly sheathing and mottled or barred red at the bases, 5–20 cm long, lanceolate, acute.
Sterile shoots usually 2-leaved; leaves shortly petioled, semi-erect, conduplicate, to 30 cm long, narrowly elliptic to linear, acute.
Dorsal sepal galeate; galea 5–7.5 mm long, 4–6 mm wide and 1.5–2 mm deep, elliptic, rarely ovate to obovate, acute to obtuse.
Floral bracts as tall as or taller than the flowers, lanceolate, acuminate, the apices usually reflexed.
Petals erect, 4–5.5 mm long, narrowly obovate-oblong, truncate, oblique, rarely obovate, acute.
Terrestrial herb with separate fertile and sterile shoots; perennating by testicular tubers.
Flowers facing down at an angle of 45°, deep dusty-purple or other shades of purple-red.
Lateral sepals 7.5 mm long, oblong, rarely ovate, acute.
Lip 4–5.5 mm long, linear to narrowly elliptic, pendent.
Inflorescence dense, 6–20 cm long, 20–70-flowered.
Rostellum 1.5–2 mm tall, lateral lobes parallel.
Anther 1.5–2 mm long.
Ovary c. 1 cm long.
Stigma stipitate.
