Flora of North America species comparison

short.

15–20, many-ranked, spreading, gray-green or flushed rose, 12–30 × 1–2 cm, finely appressed-scaly;

sheath pale to nearly chestnut brown, ovate, flat, not forming pseudobulb, 2–4 cm wide;

blade narrowly triangular, tapering evenly from base to apex, nearly plane to channeled, soft, brittle, margins involute, apex attentuate.

scape conspicuous, erect or ascending, 3–10 cm, 2–5 mm diam.;

bracts densely imbricate, erect, blade often hanging, like leaves but gradually smaller;

sheath of bracts narrowing abruptly into blade;

spikes erect or ascending, never palmate, linear, compressed, 5–20 × 0.8–1.2 cm, apex acute; simple or laxly 2–3 lateral branches.

5–30, conspicuous;

sepals with adaxial pair connate, oblong, keeled, 1.5–1.8 cm, thin-leathery, slightly veined, apex obtuse, surfaces glabrous;

corolla tubular, petals erect, lavender-blue, ligulate, to 3 cm;

stamens exserted;

stigma exserted, conduplicate-spiral.

to 3 cm.

bracts laxly imbricate, erect, green, red, or purple, broad (covering all or most of rachis, rachis not visible at anthesis), elliptic, keeled toward apex, 1.8–2 × 0.6–0.9 cm, leathery, base visible in fruit, apex acute, surfaces glabrous.