Description

Plants solitary or forming small to large colonies of rosettes, acaulescent or rarely caulescent, to 3 m diam.; rosettes usually small. Stems procumbent, 0.1–0.4 m, or erect, 1–2 m. Leaf blade rigidly spreading, including distal leaves, linear, lanceolate, concavo-convex, or plano-keeled, widest near middle, 20–80(–150) × 0.4–2 cm, rigid or flexible, not glaucous, margins entire, becoming filiferous, white, becoming brownish, gray, or green, apex long-acuminate, spinose, spine acicular, short, 3–7 mm. Inflorescences racemose, occasionally paniculate proximally, arising well beyond rosettes, (4–)8–20 dm, glabrous or finely pubescent; branches, when present, 0.5–1 dm; bracts erect, linear, proximal 10–20 × 1–2 cm, distal 3–8 × 1–2 cm; peduncle scapelike, 0.3–2.5 m, 1–2 cm diam. Flowers pendent, 3–5.5(–6.5) cm; perianth campanulate to globose; tepals distinct, white to cream or greenish white, often tinged pink or brown, broad to narrowly elliptic to lanceolate-elliptic or orbiculate, 3–6.5 × 1.3–2.5 cm; filaments 0.7–2.8 cm; anthers 3.2–6 mm; pistil 1.5–3.5 cm; style white to pale green, 3–10(–13) mm; stigmas lobed. Fruits erect, capsular, dehiscent, moderately to deeply constricted, 3.5–7.5 × 2–3 cm, dehiscence septicidal. Seeds dull black, thin, 7–9 × 5–7 mm.