Plants consisting of leafy fans crowded or emerging at intervals from far-spreading horizontal stolons; stolons c. 3 mm diam., pale yellow in colour. Leaves 120–350 mm × 3–8 mm, the two surfaces similar; usually dark green; nerves many, the median ones crowded and uncoloured, or sometimes pale yellow; margins not usually scabrid, may be scabrid at tip; leaf in transverse section convex lens-shaped, two rows of vascular bundles present centrally, marginal vascular bundles present, sclerenchyma present on inside of leaf sheath. Inflorescences short, not usually carrying flowers over leaves, peduncles also short; panicle narrow, much but usually closely branched, lower bracts long, lanceolate, green-brown, upper bracts shorter and brown, occurring singly, 2–5 flowers (often 2) per branch. Pedicels stout, glabrous, c. 14–20 mm long. In flower bud, perianth often yellowish externally, similar in size or slightly larger than the ovary. Flowers 20–28 mm diam.; tepals all white internally, widely patent; outer usually > ½ the length of the inner, narrower, blunt-elliptical, flattened, without an apiculus; inner oval-elliptical, shortly unguiculate, usually leaving most of outer tepals visible, cleft present at tip. Staminal filaments very shortly connate; anthers c. 3 mm long, dark yellow, pollen sacs broad, connective also broad; pollen ellipsoidal, monosulcate, 30.4–38.0 × 26.6–34.3 µm. Ovary barrel-shaped, green; style branches very slightly winged, pointing upwards. Capsule usually < 10 mm long, ovoid-barrel shaped, ripening from green to yellow then black on maturity, often indehiscent for more than a year after ripening. Seeds c. 1.5 mm diam., subglobose, surface texture reticulate-foveolate, orange or orange-brown. Chromosome number: 2n = 9x = c. 171 (Blanchon et al. 2000a). FL Oct–Dec; FR Jan–Dec.

2n = 171