Herbs perennial, 0.9--1.6 m tall. Stems hollow, striate. Leaves withering early basally; petiole 2--6 cm; leaf blade ovate, to 16 X 10 cm, 3-pinnatifid to pinnatisect; segments ovate-lanceolate, margin incised-dentate, apex acute. Inflorescences 6--20 cm; bracts leaflike, ca. 9 mm, shorter than flowers. Pedicel short. Calyx ca. 5 mm; lobes 5, obtuse-triangular, less than 1 mm, margin entire. Corolla tube slightly exceeding calyx; beak of galea ca. 1 cm; lower lip ca. 1.8 cm, ciliate. Filaments glabrous. Capsule ovoid-oblong, ca. 4 X as long as calyx, apex obtuse. Fl. Aug, fr. Aug--Sep.

Deep wet humus in shade of broad-leaved forests in lower temperate zone, swamps, dense Rhododendron and Abies forests; 3200--3600 m. S Xizang [Bhutan, C Nepal, Sikkim].