A perennial plant 35-80 cm tall. Stems glabrous. Stem leaf blades linear to linear-lanceolate, base obtuse to rounded, margin slightly revolute and smooth, apex acuminate to acute, veins 1-3 and prominent. Lowermost leaves pale purple, 1-1.2 cm; middle leaves 5-10 cm × 3-9(-20) mm; upper leaves slightly smaller, surrounding flowers. Inflorescences formed by crowded axillary or terminal clusters, few to many flowered; bracts 0.8-1.2 cm. Flowers sessile; calyx tube 0.8-1.2 cm, usually split on 1 side; lobes irregular, linear to narrowly triangular, 4-8(-16) mm, margin slightly revolute, apex acute, vein 1; corolla blue-purple, tubular-campanulate, 3.5-4.5 cm; lobes ovate-orbicular, 5-8 mm, margin entire or erose, apex obtuse to rounded; plicae triangular to truncate, 1-1.5 mm, oblique, margin entire; stamens inserted at middle of corolla tube; filaments subulate, 7-10 mm; anthers narrowly ellipsoid, 4-4.5 mm; style 2-3 mm. Capsules 1.5-1.8 cm; gynophore to 1 cm. Seeds 2-2.5 mm.

Antibacterial and stomachic (roots)

Flora of China
Plants For A Future

The roots are an excellent tonic for the digestive system, working especially on the stomach, liver and gall bladder. It is used in the treatment of jaundice, leucorrhoea, eczema, conjunctivitis, sore throat, acute infection of the urinary system, hypertension with dizziness and tinnitus.

Jing-Nuan Wu. An Illustrated Chinese Materia Medica. P: 334, Oxford University Press, Inc.2005.