Perennial, geophytic herb, exuding milky latex where damaged. Underground organ a cylindrical swollen tuber with white flesh, 43.9-62.3 x 9.5-14.7 mm; neck 11.6-40.6 mm long. Stems solitary, erect, terete, grooved, mostly unbranched, 160-286(-440) mm tall, internodes 8.3-43.2 mm long, glabrous to bifariously pubescent. Leaves opposite, simple, spreading-erect, horizontal or slightly pointing downward; petiole sessile or subsessile, up to 2.5(-4.0) mm long; lamina linear to almost filiform, 22-95(-132) x (0.6-)0.8-5.5 mm, base attenuate, margins smooth and revolute, apex acute, midrib prominent below, glabrous; bottom leaves caducous. Inflorescences: 1-4 extra-axillary along the upper part of the stem, globose umbels 12-18 mm in diameter, 4-15(-20)-flowered; peduncle erect, 8.9-22.6(-35) mm long, bracts filiform, ca. 1.4 x 0.2 mm. Flowers sessile to subsessile, 6.6-7.6 x 6-8.7 mm wide at the top, pedicel to 0.4 mm long. Calyx reaching beyond the corolla sinuses; lobes lanceolate to ovate, 4.1-4.5(-6.0) x (1.2-)1.3-1.7(-2.5) mm, ventral surface glabrous, dorsal surface pilose pubescent; small, lanceolate colleters opposite the sinuses. Corolla 5-lobed, tubular, fused in basal 5th (0.9-1.9 mm) or almost free to the base; lobes erect, oblong, linear-oblong to lanceolate, narrowly deltate or obovate, 5.9-7.8(-9) x 1.6-2.5 mm, apex with margins inflexed and connivent to form a small sharp point, notched or rounded, margins hyaline, revolute and wavy in the upper part, dorsal surface glabrous, ventral surface puberulous especially towards the apex, variable in coloration from white with brown stripes (Ngwenya 107), green or whitish tinged with purple (Ngwenya 471), purplish-green (Ngwenya 1107) or plain green (Bester 10585). Corona in 2 unequal series, produced at the gynostegial column-base. Staminal corona 5-merous, fused basally; lobes erect, dorsi-ventrally flattened, 4.8-6.0 mm tall, blade elliptic to ovate, (3.0-)3.7-4.4(-4.5) x 1.0-2.1(-2.2) mm, sometimes shortly stipitate, stipe 0.5-1.0(-2.0) x 0.3-1.2 mm, base obtuse ratio of stalk to blade 1:6-8, inner face smooth, apical portion sometimes convex with 2 obscure longitudinal ridges, margins revolute (as if pinched, then apical section ca. half as broad as basal section) and concave on the outer surface or featureless, apex obtuse or rounded, sometimes slightly emarginate, basally tapering into a short stalk which has two laterally placed, paddle shaped or foot-shaped, irregularly margined, sometimes lobular, inflexed and pressed flaps of tissue 0.3-0.6 x 0.3-0.6 mm and distinctly longitudinally ridged, margins sometimes slightly reflexed below, much reflexed apically, outer surface smooth and featureless. Interstaminal corona 5-merous; lobes short, dentate-filiform, 0.3-0.7 x 0.1-1.7 mm. Staminal-column arising from the base of the corolla, subglobose with anther-wings and anther-appendages forming a frilly cap over the style-apex, 2.8-3.0 x 2.4-2.7 mm. Androecium: anthers 1.4-2.5(-4.0) x 0.8-1.49(-1.8) mm; anther-wings 0.4-0.6 mm tall produced at the very apex of the anthers (above the anther-sacs), extending 0.4-0.6 mm from gynostegial column, (0.3-)0.4-0.6 x 0.1-0.3(-0.7) mm, gynostegial-groove wide 0.2-0.3(-0.5) mm and gutter-like; anther-appendages sagittate-ovate, folded basally and connivent at the acute apex, 0.8-1.7(-1.8) x 0.1-1.0(-1.3) mm, held well above the style-apex on 0.2-0.5 mm long basal stalk. Pollinarium: pollinia solitary and pendulous in each anther-sac, oblong-curved or boomerang-shaped, 0.83-0.95(-1.20) x 0.23-0.25(-0.30) mm, attached apically to the translators, distal end forming a flat germination zone; caudicle long, thin, sinuous, 1.3-1.5(-1.7) x (0.03-)0.08-0.11 mm, narrowing to 0.03-0.07 mm wide where attached to clip, and 0.20-0.26 mm broadened and excavated at the base where it is attached to the pollinia; corpusculum diamond-shaped to ovate, 0.2-0.4 x 0.08 x 0.09(-0.21) mm, with 2 downwardly pointing paddle-like wings ca. 5 x 65-80 µm. Gynoecium: style-apex small and truncated. Follicles solitary, erect, narrowly fusiform, 68.6-72.2 x 4.8-5.9(-6.0) mm, apex attenuately beaked and sometimes slightly curved, surface smooth, tomentose when young, sparsely hairy when more mature. Seeds not seen.
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