Rosettes single or forming small patches, appressed to the ground in exposed grassland but up to 5 cm tall in shelter of rocks. Leaves broad-ovate to deltoid, c. 9-14 × 9-14 mm, dark green, simple and crenately lobed or toothed, or cut to about halfway into 3 main lobes, rather thick and stiff, covered in pale buff hairs. Petioles 15-40 mm long, hairy, dark-mottled, with broad, sheathing, scarious, ciliate bases. Peduncle 2-4 cm long, stout, decumbent or ascending, dark-mottled or purplish throughout, hairy, bearing 1-2 simple narrow bracts near base. Flowers solitary, 15-20 mm diam.; sepals 5, caducous, green-margined, dark brown or sometimes almost black beneath; petals 5-(7), rather narrow, 7-10 × 3-4 mm, glossy yellow above but often blotched with orange-brown, dark brown beneath; nectary near base of petal, covered by a narrow oblong scale; stamens 15-20; receptacle sparsely hairy. Achenes 4-(6), blotched with very dark brown, c. 4-5 mm long; body ellipsoid, c. 2-2.5 × 1.5-2 mm; beak slender, barely curved, c. 2-2.5 mm long.

Herba rosulata a R. kirkii Petrie differt foliis crassis, trilobatis sed haud ternatis; floribus solitariis, grandioribus, nectario basali; acheniis angustioribus, rostris longioribus; a R. folioso Kirk differt floribus solitariis; nectario basali; acheniis paucis, majoribus, rostris longioribus.

Rosette herb about 8-10 cm diam., or forming compact patches up to 30 cm diam. by sympodial growth. Rhizome stout, 4-8 mm diam., loosely fibrous from the remains of sheathing petiolar bases and bearing abundant long fleshy roots c. 1.5 mm diam. Lamina deltoid to orbicular or sub-reniform, 2-3-(4) cm diam., rather thick and firm, glossy bright green above, paler but no less glossy beneath, divided about three-quarter-way into three 3-5- lobed segments, sparsely hairy with penicillate tuft at tip of each lobe. Petiole 1.5-3 cm long, cobwebby on the short, broad, sheathing base, grooved on adaxial surface. Peduncle without bracts, green, often purple-stained at base, clad in fine, cobwebby hairs, very short in flower but elongating to 3-5 cm in fruit, becoming broader upwards. Flowers solitary, 25-30 mm diam.; sepals 5, c. 15 mm long, often emarginate at tips, greenish yellow, finely hairy beneath, almost glabrous above; petals 5, barely or not exceeding sepals, c. 10-12 × 6-8 mm, bright yellow but green in basal third, the base abruptly narrowed; nectary of 3 simple pits per petal, the central one largest; receptacle almost glabrous, pale yellow-green. Fruiting head compact, globose to ovoid, c. 12 mm diam.; achenes numerous, c. 5 mm long; body bulbous, 1.5—2 mm diam.; beak straight and tapering, c. 3 mm long.

Herba rosulata a R. pingui Hook. f. differt foliis profundius divisis, segmentis angustioribus; scapo arachnoideo; petalis quinque, latis, vix rigidis; nectariis tribus; achenii rostro corpore longiore; a R. sericophyllo Hook. differt pubescentia minus densa; foliis minus divisis, segmentis latioribus; scapo basi gradatim angustato; floribus 3 cm brevioribus, petalis sepala aequantibus vel vix superantibus.