Erect terrestrial herbs with thickened, tuberous rhizomes usually made up of roughly triangular, subconic, corm-like annual sections. Leaves several, erect, lanceolate, acuminate, plicate, strongly veined, ultimately deciduous, 60-120 cm. long and 2-10 cm. wide, contracted below into a cylindric leafy petiole, the broad bases enveloping the corm-like pseudobulb. Inflorescences erect, lateral, leafless scapes, produced from the base of the corm, terminating in a raceme 70-100 cm. tall. Flowers many, of moderate size. Sepals free, erect, subequal, lanceolate to oblanceolate, acute, 2-2.5 cm. long and 0.7-0.8 cm. wide, the laterals adnate at the base to the column foot. Petals erect, oblong, obtuse, subequal to the sepals, 1.5-1.7 cm. long and 0.7-0.8 cm. broad. Lip 3-lobed, lateral lobes rounded, erect, the apices spreading, mid-lobe entire, usually reflexed, with numerous minutely denticulate longitudinal nerves; disk with 2 erect, alate processes, the base sub-saccate, forming a rounded mentum with the foot of the column. Column winged, arcuate, 0.8-1.0 cm. long, produced at the base into a foot.
Plants 70–170 cm. Leaves linear-elliptic to narrowly ovate, 20–120 × 3–11 cm, apex acuminate. Inflorescences erect, to 1 m; bracts narrowly ovate to filiform, 1–3 cm. Flowers many, 1.5–2.5 cm wide; sepals light green, very narrowly elliptic to narrowly obovate, apex acuminate to apiculate; lateral sepals slightly oblique, adnate to column foot; petals spreading, green or green with pink overflush, 13 × 7 mm, broader than sepals; lip red-maroon, concave, saccate, 11–17 × 18–28 mm, slightly to conspicuously 3-lobed, middle lobe apically obtuse, margins undulate, lateral lobes partially enclosing column; disc with erect lamellae; column 7–10 mm. Capsules ellipsoid, to 6 cm.
Flowers not opening widely; sepals greenish-yellow, petals and lip reddish-brown or red-purple, occasionally white with a purple disk on the lip.
Lip 14–19 × 8–12 mm, with a saccate base, 3-lobed in the apical half; side lobes rounded, mid-lobe 5–6 × 8 mm, the edges undulate.
Lip with a callus of 2 flap-like ridges in the middle, and with papillae on the 5 central veins of the mid-lobe.
Perennating organ a fleshy, subterranean rhizome c. 1 cm in diameter; roots 1.5 mm in diameter, white.
Dorsal sepal 18–20 × 4–5 mm, oblong-lanceolate, subacute; lateral sepals slightly longer and wider.
Leaves 4, up to 120 × 5–10 cm, erect, lanceolate, acuminate, plicate, with a long petiole.
Inflorescence densely many-flowered; scape with 3 sheaths.
Leaves lanceolate, up to 4 ft. long and 4 in. broad
Bracts 10–30 mm long, reflexed, linear, aristate.
Petals 15–19 × 3–5 mm, oblong-ligulate.
Column 7–10 mm long; foot 4 mm long.
Flowers numerous, green and purple.
Pedicel and ovary 18–20 mm long.
Terrestrial herb 1–2 m tall.
Fruit 3 cm long, pendent.
Scape up to 4 ft. high