Plants 400-500 mm high, with purple or purple-veined cataphylls, drying dark brown. Corm globose to obconic, 10-16 mm diam.; tunics of matted, fine fibres usually extending upward for a short distance. Stem erect, ± straight, unbranched. Leaves (2)3, lowermost sheathing lower 1/4 of stem with blade vestigial to short, lanceolate, (10-)20-40 x 2.3-4.0 mm, margins and main vein moderately thickened and hyaline, second leaf inserted shortly above basal leaf, blade vestigial, uppermost leaf entirely sheathing, 20-50 mm long, margins overlapping around stem; non-flowering plants with solitary, narrowly lanceolate leaf emergent, at flowering 70-100 mm long but ultimately at least 200 mm long, grey-green, 3-4 mm wide, margins and main vein lightly thickened and raised. Spike erect, barely flexuose, 5-to 12-flowered; bracts pale green, apices and upper margins often flushed reddish purple, outer 11-18(-21) mm long, inner ± as long or slightly shorter. Flowers whitish to pale mauve with upper tepals flushed with purple and darker toward apices, lower lateral tepal limbs with transverse chevron of white (or yellow) edged with purple, unscented; perianth tube obliquely funnel-shaped, 10-11 mm long, cylindric lower part ± 4 mm long; tepals with upper lanceolate-elliptic, dorsal largest, extended horizontally over stamens, curving upward distally, 18-20 x 10-12 mm, upper laterals directed forward throughout or weakly spreading distally, ± 15 x 7 mm, sometimes narrowly windowed between bases of dorsal and upper lateral tepals, lower 3 tepals united with upper laterals for ± 4 mm and together for ± 3 mm, strongly clawed, limbs flexed downward and those of lower laterals diverging, lower laterals 12-14 mm long, claws ± 6 mm long, limbs 6-8 x 3.5-4.5 mm, lower median ± 14 mm long, claw ± 4 mm long, limb ± 10 x 5 mm. Filaments 12-15 mm long, exserted 5-8 mm from tube; anthers ± 6.5 mm long, greenish or mauve with dark lines on ventral sides; pollen yellow. Style arching over stamens, dividing opposite lower third of anthers, branches 2.0-2.5 mm long. Capsules ellipsoid, 12-15 mm long. Seeds oval, ± 5 x 3.5 mm, broadly and evenly winged.
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