Perennial, rosulate, with a horizontal rhizome. Leaves suberect, up to 400 x 100 mm, margin crenate, base cuneate, decurrent on petiole, petiole up to 50 x 8 mm, reddish-brown to green, pilose; petiolode up to 15 x 8-mm. Inflorescences from top of petiolode, usually 1-to 2-flowered, not uncommonly 4-to 6-flowered, rarely up to 12-flowered (Kranskop population); pilose with glandular and eglandular hairs throughout. Peduncle up to 200 mm, reddish-brown to green; bracts lanceolate, 2.5 x 1 mm, green; pedicel 5-20 mm, green to reddish-brown. Calyx segments linear, 6(-11) x 1.5(-2) mm, green, brown-tipped, pilose with glandular and eglandular hairs. Corolla (25-)35-50(-75) mm; tube (20-)25-45(-55)mm, base 2.5-4(-6) mm diam., throat c. 15 mm diam., infundibuliform dilated in upper half, pilose with glandular and eglandular hairs outside, minutely glandular inside, floor of tube with a median yellow stripe (this very rarely absent), usually flanked by deep violet or reddish-violet streaks that extend onto the lobes of the lower lip; upper lobes broadly oblong to suborbicular, c. 8-15 x 8-18 mm; lower lip 15-25 mm long, lobes sub-equal, orbicular-oblong, 9-17 x 10-13 mm, all lobes commonly medium violet or rose-pink, very occasionally white, glabrous inside, paler (often chalky) on the outside and there pilose with glandular and eglandular hairs, sparsely pilose in the throat. Stamens arising about middle of corolla tube; filaments 7-10 mm, white or purple, glandular; anther lobes about 2 mm long, white or violet; posterior staminode minute, laterals 2 mm. Ovary c. 17-25 mm long, greenish, appressed-pubescent sometimes with glandular hairs intermixed; style c. 12 mm long, white, glandular; stigma white or violet. Capsule 45-110 mm long. Seeds 0.5-0.7 mm long, reticulate.
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Rosulate perennial. Leaves oblong-lanceolate, 250-450 x 40-125 mm, lamina decurrent, pilose, margins crenate, petiole 0-60 mm; lower surface with sparse, short-stalked glands. Inflorescences up to 7-flowered; peduncle up to 300 mm tall, pilose, Sepals linear-lanceolate, 4-11 x 1-2 mm, pilose, tips red-brown. Corolla widely to narrowly funnelshaped, 30-80 mm long, tube straight or bent, 20-55 mm long, white to purple, yellow stripe on floor, cylindrical, 8-15 x 10-20 mm at throat, outside glandular-pubescent, inside very sparsely set with short-stalked glands, roof with filiform trichomes at mouth; limb weakly to strongly bilabiate, lobes suborbicular to oblong, porrect to slightly reflexed, skyblue, mauve, lilac or deep purple, up to 11 dark lines on limb, usually 7 on lower lobes. Stamens 9-12 mm long; filaments white to very dark blue, glabrous basally but with numerous stalked glands distally; anthers 3 x 1 mm, white to purple; posterior staminode minute, lateral staminodes c. 1.5 mm long. Pollen prolate, 20 x 12 nm, tricolpate, exine microreticulate and minutely scabrate. Ovary c. 8-30 mm long, with dense, appressed, filiform trichomes, disc white or orange, style 8-30 mm long, dorsiventrally compressed, with stalked glandular trichomes distally; stigma stomatomorphic, bilabiate, elliptical, papillate. Fruit pale brown, up to 100 x 1.5 mm.
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