Plants 200-400 mm high, usually in small colonies, usually with 1 or more cormlets in leaf or cataphyll axils, and sometimes with collar of fibres around base. Corm mostly 10-15 mm diam.; tunics of light (rarely dark brown), relatively fine, firm or soft fibres; often producing two new corms to replace parent corm. Stem rarely velvety to pilose or glabrous, simple or 1(2)-branched, sheathing leaves or becoming dry from tips, attenuate, 55-70 mm long. Foliage leaf solitary, shallowly channelled, usually exceeding stem and up to twice as long, 3.5-5.5 mm wide, often trailing distally. Rhipidial spathes with dry, attenuate tips, inner 55-80 mm long, outer ± 1/2 as long. Flowers long-lived, pale blue to pale violet or light purple, outer tepal limbs with small, triangular yellow (rarely ± white) nectar guides at bases edged dark blue, short-velvety (rarely glabrous), spreading at 45-60º, scented of vanilla; outer tepals 30-40 x 15-20 mm, claws 12-18 mm long, velvety, limbs ± orbicular, widest above middle, 15-20(-23) mm long, usually ± as wide, inner tepals hair-like, erect, 1.5-3.5 mm long. Filaments ± free or united < 0.2 mm, 4.0-5.5 mm long; anthers 8-11 mm long, usually not reaching stigma lobes; pollen orange-red. Ovary ellipsoid, slightly narrowed below apex, (10-)12-15 mm long; style vestigial, branches ± 15 mm long, crests linear, 8-12 mm long. Capsules 16-19 mm long, narrowly ovoid-oblong with thickened rim. Seeds angular, relatively large, 2-3 mm long, angles forming wing-like ridges.
Home