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Plants with subterranean, moniliformous rhizomes; leaves somewhat coriaceous, fully developed and generally more than half the length of the flowering stem at anthesis, up to 110-620 x 4-30 mm; flowering stem c. 150-650 mm tall. Inflorescences lax to dense, 3-18-flowered. Flowers fully resupinate at anthesis, sepals reddish purple to green or dark purplish olive outside, paler within, petals pale straw yellow or white, tinged purple or brownish-purple at the base, lip similar but with bluish or purplish veins on the side lobes, crests yellow. Sepals spreading; median sepal 14-36 mm long, oblong to lanceolate-oblong; lateral sepals similar. Petals declinate over the lip to slightly spreading, about as long as the median sepal. Lip 3-lobed, crests consisting of 2-5 undulate ridges in the basal third, passing into slender acuminate papillae, extending more or less than half-way along the midlobe; mentum 1-5 mm long; spur 1-5.6 mm long, conical to cylindrical. Gynostemium 6-9 mm long.
Terrestrial, semi-robust herb, with subterranean, moniliformous rhizomes, 0.150.50 m high. Leaves somewhat coriaceous, 110-460 x 4-30 mm, mature at anthesis. Inflorescence lax, 3-18-flowered. Flowers with sepals reddish purple to green or dark purplish olive outside, paler inside, petals pale straw-yellow or white tinged brownish purple at base, lip similar with bluish veins on the side lobes, veins and crests yellow. Sepals: median sepal 14-36 mm long, oblong; lateral sepals similar. Petals declinate over lip, as long as median sepal. Lip 3-lobed, crests with 2-5 undulate ridges in base, passing into slender, acuminate papillae; mentum 1-5 mm long; spur cylindrical, 1.0-5.6 mm long. Gynostemium 6-9 mm long. Flowering time Nov.-Feb.
Rhizomatous geophyte to 65 cm. Leaves leathery, fully developed at anthesis. Flowers few in a lax raceme, sepals purple, petals and lip white and tinged purple, lip crests yellow, median sepal oblong to lanceolate-oblong, 14-36 mm long, lip crests of ridges and papillae, spur conical to cylindrical, 1.0-5.6 mm long.
Flowers nutant, sepals greenish or brownish, sometimes faintly speckled with purple towards the tip, or purplish; petals and lip straw-yellow flushed with purplish or pink, or white with blue speckling on the petals and yellow crests on the lip.
Perennating organs subterranean, several connected by a rhizome to form a chain, tuberous, each c. 2.5 cm long and 1.5–2.5 cm high, onion-shaped, covered with fibrous remains of leaf bases; roots 2 mm in diameter.
Lip 15–23 × 10–15 mm when flattened, 3-lobed; side lobes rounded; mid-lobe suborbicular to elliptic, rounded; callus of 2–5 bright yellow lamellae, turning to papillae on the basal half of the mid-lobe.
Leaves 4–7, forming a fan, 10–60 × 0.3–3 cm, linear or linear-lanceolate, acute, plicate, partly to well developed at flowering time.
Inflorescence laxly or fairly densely up to about 10-flowered; scape with 4 whitish acuminate sheaths c. 5 cm long.
Spur 1–5.6 mm long, cylindrical, often slightly bifid at the tip, incurved.
Petals 17–24 × 8–12 mm, lying over the column, elliptic, acute or obtuse.
Sepals spreading, (14)17–28(36) × 3–6 mm, oblong-lanceolate, acute.
Bracts 10–27 mm long, lanceolate, acuminate, papery.
Pedicel and ovary 14–25 mm long, arched.
Terrestrial herb 12–90 cm tall.
Column 3–6 mm long.
