Plant to 2 m. high. Stem 10-13 cm. long, covered by the densely imbricate leaf-bases. Leaves 10-15 dm. long, entire; sheaths triangular, 1 dm. long, densely and finely brown-appressed-lepidote; petioles 15-25 cm. long, 5 mm. wide; blades sublinear, acuminate, 30-35 mm. wide, bearing 5 or 6 narrow grooves, finely nerved, glabrous. Scape erect, short, slender, glabrous. The lower scape-bracts foliaceous, 5 dm. long, the upper 2 cm. long. Inflorescence paniculate, laxly tripinnate, 7-18 dm. long, glabrous. Primary bracts deciduous by anthesis. Axes terete, smooth, red. Branches to 33 cm. long. Racemes many-flowered. Internodes 4-10 mm. long. Floral bracts lanceo-late, acuminate, shorter than the pedicels, greenish with a scarious margin. Flowers spreading or nutant. Pedicels slender, 5-7 mm. long. Sepals narrowly triangular, acuminate, 9-12 mm. long, ecarinate. Petals linear, acute, 2 cm. long, red, bear-ing a small suborbicular scale at base. Stamens shorter than the petals. Ovary 4/5 superior. Seeds long-caudate.
Home