Acaulescent herb; rhizome branching underground, bright orange-red. Leaves 2–7(–8) per plant, mainly erect but older ones ascending to slightly recurving, the outer crescentic with acute edges to the concave channel, the inner cylindric, 50–120(–150)≈1.3–1.9 cm, channeled all down the face, the central leaf with almost indistinct channel, stiff, slightly rough to very rough with a surface like ground glass, gradually tapering to a sharp whitish-brown spine 0.6 cm long, flattish and hardly piercing, the channel much narrower than, or at the basal part sometimes nearly as broad as, the leaf; margins greenish whitish at the basal part, passing into obtusely rounded green edges at the upper part, sharp, with numerous slight grooves or impressed longitudinal lines on the sides and back, dull deep green to bluish green with age, transverse banding decreasing with maturity. Inflorescence a spike-like raceme with clusters in upper part, light greyish green, 25–50(–75) cm high; flowers 3–6 per cluster, very crowded, ascending-spreading; lower inflorescence bracts 2–3, 5–7.5 cm long; bracteoles 0.2–0.3 cm long, membranous, acute; pedicels 0.2 cm long or less, jointed at the apex. Flower tube pale greenish, 1.7–3.2 cm long, 0.3 cm wide, slightly inflated at the base, lobes white or greenish white and minutely dusted with purplish on the back at the apex, linear, 1.3–2 cm long, obtuse, revolute. Fruit a globose berry, 0.6–1.4 cm in diameter.