Acaulescent perennial herb with a short creeping or suberect sometimes branched rootstock, apical part (where leaves attached) with short (under 1 mm long) puberulous hairs. Leaves in a basal rosette, appressed to the ground, often variegated with pale green areas along midrib and lateral veins, subsessile or with petiole up to 1.5(–2) cm long; lamina lyrate, obovate-spathulate in outline, terminal segment elliptic to orbicular, largest 2.5–10≈1–4.2 cm, apex subacute to truncate, base attenuate, decurrent, margin on terminal segment entire to crenate; below sparsely puberulous along midrib and lateral veins and often with very fine scattered hairs on lamina, above with sparse curly hairs on midrib and usually scattered hairs on lamina. Spikes 1.5–6.5(–9) cm long, unbranched or branched; peduncle 1–7.5(–9.5) cm long; sterile bracts imbricate, ovate, 3–5.5(–6) mm long, acuminate to cuspidate, glabrous but for a finely ciliate margin, very finely rugose on back, indistinctly keeled; fertile bracts green or pale green, broadly ovate, 5–6.5 mm long, acuminate to cuspidate, ± a narrow scarious margin, glabrous but for a finely ciliate margin, sometimes indistinctly keeled; bracteoles lanceolate, 3–4 mm long (including a dorsally attached mucro up to 1 mm long), acuminate, crisped-puberulous in a central band and finely ciliate near apex. Sepals ciliate near apex, otherwise glabrous; dorsal elliptic, 3–4 mm long, broadly rounded to truncate (rarely subacute); lateral and ventral lanceolate to narrowly elliptic, 3.5–4.5 mm long (including a dorsally attached mucro 0.5–1 mm long). Corolla white or cream, often cleistogamous or apparently only opening partially; tube 2–3.5 mm long; lobes 1.5–3 mm long, sometimes bifid. Stamens 2, subsessile; anthers ± 0.5 mm long. Capsule 4–5 mm long, glabrous. Seed ± 0.75 mm long, pitted. Fig. 1, 1–7, p. 13.
