Plants acaulescent, frequently suckering; rosettes openly cespitose, 3-4 × 5-6 dm. Leaves mostly ascending to erect, (25-) 30-50 × 2-4(-5.2) cm; blade light green to yellowish green, sometimes checkmarked but without bud-prints, linear-lanceolate, stiff, adaxially concave toward apex, abaxially convex toward base; margins straight, easily detached, nonfiliferous, conspicuously armed, teeth single 2-6 mm, mostly (1-)2-4 cm apart, rarely absent; apical spine grayish, conical to subulate, 1.5-4.5 cm. Scape (2-)2.5-3.5 m. Inflorescences spicate, densely flowered on distal 1/2; bracts caducous, linear, 1-3 cm; peduncle 2-5 mm, rarely 20-150 mm. Flowers 2-3 per cluster, erect to slightly recurved, (2.4-)3-4.5 cm; perianth yellow, frequently tinged with red or purple, tube campanulate, 1.5-4 × 6-12 mm, limb lobes ascending, subequal, 11-20 mm; stamens long-exserted; filaments inserted on rim of perianth tube, spreading, yellow to reddish, 2.5-4.2 cm; anthers pale yellow, (11-)15-20 mm; ovary (0.8-)1.5-2.2 cm, neck constricted (2-)4-8.5 mm. Capsules sessile or short-pedicellate, oblong, 1.8-2.5(-3) cm, apex beaked. Seeds 4.5-6 mm. 2n = 110-120.

Flowering mid spring--late summer. Gravelly to rocky calcareous places in desert scrub; 500--1400 m; N.Mex., Tex.; n, e Mexico.