General: Perennial herb from a thick, branched taproot; stems branched, winged from ridges that run down from the leaf bases, 0.5-1.5 m tall; stem and inflorescence with spreading and downward-curving, conical, bristly hairs.
Leaves: Basal leaves stalked, large, the blades egg-shaped or narrowly egg-shaped to oblong, 15-30 cm long and 7-12 cm wide; stem leaves ample, oblong-lanceolate, with long-tapering, pointed tips, gradually becoming smaller and shorter-stalked upwards, spreading-hairy, entire, alternate.
Flowers: Inflorescence of several to many small, coiled, drooping, bractless clusters; corollas cream or dull blue to purplish, 1.5-1.8 cm long; petals fused at base into a tube that flares at top to a bell-shaped limb (longer than tube) and 5 lobes with recurved tips, the throat with 5 narrow hairy bulges; calyx teeth sharp-tipped.
If more than one illustration is
available for a species (e.g., separate illustrations were provided for two
subspecies) then links to the separate images will be provided below.
Note that individual subspecies or varietal illustrations are not always available.
