Perennial herb with a thick clump of partly subterranean vegetative buds at the crown; stems often solitary, sometimes 2 or 3, usually simple, sometimes producing 1-3 secondary spikes below the main spike, erect, up to c. 400 mm long, pilose with retrorse white hairs, leafy. Leaves: radical often more or less rosulate at flowering, oblanceolate or elliptic, mostly 35-90 x 8-20 mm; cauline ascending, elliptic or oblong, mostly 20-65 x 4-9(-20) mm, becoming slightly smaller upwards and passing imperceptibly into floral bracts; all leaves with margins entire, obscurely toothed, or callose-toothed particularly in upper part, hairy at least on margins and midline. Flowers many in a dense terminal spike, opening in sunshine, spike often very long, accounting for about half the total stem length, shorter in weak specimens. Bracts adnate to calyx for 1.5-3 mm, mostly 15-30 mm long, elliptic or lanceolate, margins entire or with 1 or 2 pairs of callose teeth near the tip, hairy at least on margins and midline. Calyx 8-14 mm long, lips 34 mm, hairy at least on margins. Corolla tube (16-)20-40(-52) mm long, glandular-puberulous, hairs up to 0.1-0.2 mm long, limb held vertically, zygomorphic, mouth often glabrous, sometimes with a few large unicellular hairs, rarely thinly bearded on the anticous side; lobes deeply notched, the secondary lobes themselves sometimes notched, pink, scarlet or crimson and glandular-puberulous outside, creamy-or greenish-white inside, glandular-puberulous at least on claw of lobes. Stamens 4, all visible in the mouth, anticous anthers 1-1.3 mm long, usually shortly exserted, the two posticous ones 2-2.5 mm, often partly included, sometimes far exserted. Stigma 4-5 mm long, exserted. Capsule 12-15 x 4 mm. Seeds c. 1-1.5 x 0.7-1.5 mm, angled, colliculate, pallid.
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Perennial herb, up to 0.4 m high. Stems 1-few, erect, with thick clump of vegetative buds on crown. Leaves: radical ones rosulate, blade oblanceolate to elliptic, 35-90 x 8-20 mm; cauline ones ascending, blade oblong or elliptic, grading into bracts; hairy. Flowers: many in a terminal, crowded spike, sometimes with small ones on rachis below; corolla with tube up to 52 mm long, limb zygomorphic, held vertically, a few hairs present on anticous side of mouth, lobes sometimes twice notched, upper surface of corolla lobes glandular at least in lower part, outer surface wine-red, white inside, pink or red outside, greenish or cream-coloured inside; Dec.-Mar., opening in bright light.
Perennial herb, up to 400 mm high; stems 1-few, erect, often simple with crowded vegetative buds on crown. Leaves: radical ones rosulate, oblanceolate to elliptic; cauline ones ascending, oblong or elliptic, grading into bracts; somewhat hairy. Flowers many in a terminal, crowded spike, sometimes with small ones on rachis below, opening in bright light. Corolla: tube up to 52 mm long; limb zygomorphic, held vertically; mouth nearly glabrous; lobes sometimes twice notched, pink or red outside, greenish or cream-coloured inside. Flowering time Jan.-Mar.
Perennial herb, up to 400 mm tall, with thick clump of vegetative buds on crown. Corolla limb zygomorphic held vertically, a few hairs present on anticous side of mouth. Flowers wine-red outside, white inside.
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