Herbaceous, flowering initially in the seedling stage, then stems solitary, simple, erect, later branching from the base and surviving for more than one season, these stems simple or sparingly branched low down, erect or decumbent, eventually somewhat woody at the base but without a thick clump of vegetative buds on the crown, 35-150 mm long, hairy with coarse retrorse white hairs. Leaves crowded towards base of stem, distant upwards, lower leaves mostly 10-40 x 5-15 mm, elliptic to subrotund, apex obtuse, base narrowed to a petiole-like part, margins subentire to coarsely toothed, both surfaces thinly pilose; cauline leaves similar but smaller, sessile. Flowers opening at dusk or in dull light, spike few-flowered, crowded, scarcely elongating in fruit. Bracts adnate to calyx for 2-5 mm, similar to the cauline leaves. Calyx 8-10 mm long, lips 4-4.5 mm long, margins and keels hairy. Corolla tube c. 30-43 mm long, glandular-puberulous, hairs up to 0.1-0.2 mm long, limb held horizontally, regular; mouth with circlet of long unicellular hairs, lobes deeply notched, 5-7 mm long, dark red and glandular-puberulous outside, glabrous inside, white in upper half, vivid orange in lower. Stamens 4, 2 anticous anthers 1.5-2.6 mm long, slightly exserted, 2 posticous ones 2.5-3.2 mm long, included. Stigma 4-7 mm long, eventually exserted. Capsule c. 10 x 4 mm. Seeds not seen. Flowering between October and December, mostly going into fruit by January.
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