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Description:
Plants (120–)250–550(–850) mm high, with cataphylls usually dry and dull purple and minutely pubescent on veins. Corm globose, 18–35 mm diam.; tunics leathery, decaying into fairly coarse fibres, often thicker below. Stem lightly flexed outward above sheath of uppermost leaf, unbranched. Leaves (1)3, not overlapping, 4–7 cm long, all largely to entirely sheathing, occasionally with short blades up to 40 mm long, linear, smooth or sparsely and shortly pubescent; foliage leaf produced later in season, solitary, linear to narrowly lanceolate, pubescent (rarely glabrous), dry and decayed at flowering time or lacking. Spike slightly inclined, lightly flexuose, 8–12(16)-flowered; bracts grey-green, flushed purple, (15–)18–22 mm long, inner slightly shorter than outer, notched apically. Flowers pale to deep pink, sometimes or cream, light mauve or greenish-grey, usually tepals more darkly coloured distally, lower tepals with yellow transverse to obscure median band sometimes edged in darker pink or with a median dark streak when tepals pale, unscented or with a strong sweet rose scent; perianth tube obliquely funnel-shaped, 11–13 mm long, narrow lower part 6–7 mm long; tepals lanceolate, dorsal largest, 19–29 × 10–20 mm, upper laterals 14–25 × 8–15 mm, lower tepals joined to upper laterals for 2–5 mm and together for 2–3.5 mm, free parts 12–22 × 5–6 mm. Filaments 10–15 mm long, exserted 7–9 mm from tube but enclosed by tepals; anthers (4–)6–8 mm long, cream; pollen pale yellow. Style dividing at or just beyond anther apices, branches ± 3 mm long. Capsules ellipsoid, 16–22 mm long. Seeds oval, 7–8 × 4 mm, broadly and evenly winged. Flowering time: March to April, occasionally in February.
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