Wachendorfia thyrsiflora L.

Rhizomatous perennial herb; 0.6-2.5 m tall. Rhizome up to 150 mm long, irregular, usually cylindrical, sheathed by overlapping leaf bases; rooting from nodes. Leaves perennial, erect, lorate to lanceolate, deeply plicate, firm, glabrous, usually shorter than the flowering stem, up to 900 x 80 mm; younger plants with leaves less than 50 mm broad. Culm up to 2.5 m tall, stout (up to 15 mm diameter near base), erect, densely pilose at base (hairs up to 4 mm long) running into short (1 mm long) glandular hairs near apex. Inflorescence a dense cylindrical panicle, up to 0.6 x 0.2 m. Peduncles many, short (up to 100 mm), regularly spaced on distal half of axis. Younger plants often more laxly branched; seldom more than 7 pedicels per peduncle; no secondary peduncles. Bracts lanceolate, scarious, recurved, persistent, 10-40 mm long. Tepals bright yellow, nectar guides on base of upper 3 tepals light to dark; all slightly spathulate; 12-28 x 8-14 mm; outer adaxial tepal narrower and shorter than the rest, slightly recurved; upper 5 tepals overlapping, leaving lower tepals somewhat isolated; tepals sometimes fringed with orange cilia. Stamens: filaments 3/4 tepal length, 15-20 mm long, spreading; anthers 1.2-2.0 x 0.5-1.0 mm. Gynoecium: ovary yellowish, 2-3 x 1-2 mm; style 13-18 mm long. Fruit a 3-angled capsule, 10 x 7-10 mm. Seed large, up to 5 mm long, oval or kidney-shaped; dense microscopic blisters on seed hairs.

Can be grown by seedlings or tubers.