leaves 18 to 25, suberect, forming a funnelform rosette; sheath elliptic or suboblong, 12–15 x 6–8 cm, greenish or sometimes reddish, or purplish abaxially, densely brown ¬lepidote; blade sublinear, slightly if at all narrowed toward the base, canaliculate, 30–45 x 4–5 cm, subcoriaceous, green or purplish-red toward the apex, minutely white-lepidote, apex acute and conspicuously apiculate, margins densely to subdensely spinulose, spines 0.5–1.5 mm long, 4–5 mm apart. inflorescence: peduncle 6–10 cm long, 0.7–1 cm in diameter, inconspicuously brown-lepidote, shorter than the leaf sheaths; peduncle bracts the basal ones foliaceous, shorter to slightly exceeding the inflorescence, the upper ones ovate, acute and apiculate, densely spinulose and reddish toward the apex, subdensely brown ¬lepidote, ca 5 cm long; fertile part once-branched to twice-branched at base, narrowly obconic to subtubulose, 6–9 cm long, (3-) 5–7 cm in diameter, slightly exceeding the leaf sheaths but not elevated above the rosette; primary bracts suberect, brown-lepidote toward the base and white-lepidote toward the apex, dark red, densely spinulose near the apex, spines 1–1.5 mm long, the lower bracts ovate, apex acute and apiculate, 8–11 x 4.5 cm; fascicles 7 to 10, the lower ones 40–60 x 25–35 mm, 6-to–13-flowered, peduncle ca 10 x 10 mm; floral bracts triangular to long ovate-lanceolate, apex acute and minutely apiculate, spinulose at apex, 25–40 x 12–20 mm, greenish to dark red, sparsely brown-lepidote toward the base, brown-lanate toward the apex, slightly exceeding the ovary to equaling the sepals. flowers 45–50 mm long, pedicels 3–8 mm long; sepals narrowly elliptic to narrowly lanceolate, apex acute to acuminate, 20–23 x 5–6 mm, connate for ca 3 mm, glabrous, greenish; petals 27–30 mm long, connate for 15–17 mm, tube white, lobes 10–13 x 5 mm, narrowly oblong-elliptic, light blue at anthesis, turning pink and very slightly twisted afterward, apex narrowly obtuse-cucullate, bearing 2 callosities at base. stamens: anther 5–7 mm long, apex apiculate, dorsifixed at 2/5 to 1/2 their length above the base. pistil: stigma ellipsoid, margins lacerate; ovary subclavate, ca 12 mm long, ca 4 mm in diameter. fruits unknown.Edited from : Brom of Atl For. 178-9.. (2000)