Description:
Plants 400–650 mm high. Corm depressed-globose, 30–45 mm diam.; tunics papery to fibrous. Stem unbranched. Leaves several in a basal fan, sword-shaped, medium-textured, with prominent main vein, mostly 12–20 mm wide. Spike arching outward to almost horizontal, 10–16-flowered, flowers borne on upper side of axis; bracts green or flushed red on margins or entirely, 8–12(–15) mm long, inner minutely forked at tip. Flowers facing to side or toward base of spike, bright orange to scarlet, tube often yellowish on underside, unscented; perianth tube trumpet-shaped, slender below for 5–)7–10(–15) mm, twisted through 360°, abruptly expanded into a wide, cylindric upper part 16–25 mm long, lightly 3-pouched at base, arching outward; tepals unequal, dorsal largest, (22–)25–35 × 7–10 mm, spathulate, spooned distally, upper and lower lateral tepals mostly 10–15 mm long, spreading or half-reflexed, lowermost smallest, directed ± forward. Filaments arching under dorsal tepal, 40–50 mm long, median one 3–4 mm longer; anthers 5–7 mm long, median reaching ± to apex of dorsal tepal, light purple; pollen purple. Style horizontal, dividing opposite upper 1/3 of anthers, often ultimately exceeding them, branches 4–5 mm long. Capsules ovoid to barrel-shaped, 3-lobed, smooth, dark red to purple-black inside on opening. Seeds up to 3 per locule, more often 1 or 2 (3–9 per capsule), globose, initially 6–7 mm diam., bright orange, coat fleshy and smooth, becoming wrinkled on drying and 5–6 mm diam. Chromosome number 2n = 20. Flowering time: mid-autumn to early winter (April–June), sometimes as late as July.
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