Plants 60–150 mm tall, up to 400 mm diam. Caudex 40–240 mm long, 2.6–5.3 mm diam. at stem base when dry. Flowering stems 5–18 per plant, 1.2–1.9 mm diam. when dry, purple-black; stem leaves 3 pairs per stem. Leaves linear, 15.8– 32 mm long, (1.4–)1.5–2.8 mm wide, flat, margins smooth; leaf 1.1–1.5 mm wide at base; apex acute. Pedicels 1.5–22 mm long, 1.2–1.4 mm diam. (0.7– 1.4 mm diam. when dry). Flowers 16–63 per plant, 13.5–24 mm long. Calyx 7.0–10.0 mm long, hairs at calyx–corolla fusion line present; lobes 5.2–6.2 mm long, 1.3–2.3 mm wide at base, green tinted purpleblack, plane, margins smooth or very finely toothed, sinus hairs abundant. Corolla 10.4–17 mm long, white, tube 2.7–4.0 mm long; lobes 7.5–10.8 mm long, 4.0–5.7 mm wide, margins finely serrulate, hairs below sinus present (1–2 per sinus); nectary 1.9–2.9 mm from corolla base, widely V-shaped with a fl ap with an uneven margin (Fig. 6). Filaments 6.0–7.2 mm long from corolla base, 0.7–0.8 mm wide. Anthers 1.7–2.5 mm long, anther wall yellow or blue-black. Ovules 27–30 per ovary. Capsule 8.4–15 mm long. FL Mar–Apr(–May).
[Reproduced from Glenny (2004, New Zealand J. Bot. 42: 361-530) with permission from The Royal Society of New Zealand.]