Sturdy, bulbous geophyte up to 40cm; stem stout, speckled and barred. Leaves usually 2, dry at flowering, suberect to prostrate, fleshy, tongue-shaped, speckled underneath; flowers bright orange to red in compact umbel; red bracts erect, overlapping, stiff and fleshy.

Leaves appear after flowering, growing out and downwards, following the fruiting stem to the ground.