Perennial with a creeping thick woody rootstock. Stems few to several, unbranched, slender at base with leaf-like scales, thicker above, tomentose to lanate with simple hairs, leafy, decumbent-ascending, 10-25 cm long. Leaves often congested, broadly reniform-rhomboid, upper larger than lower, c. 35-50 x 40-60 mm, variable in density of indumentum from densely white lanate to tomentose and glabrescent, crenate to crenulate, truncate to broad cuneate; petiole on lower leaves broad, up to 20 mm below less above. Flowers few, large, 4-8 in upper leaf axils, sessile. Bracts subulate, shorter than calyces. Calyx 15-18 mm long, lanate to tomentose; tube straight, herbaceous; teeth subequal lanceolate, subulate-acuminate. Corolla 30-40 mm, pubescent; lower lip equal to or longer than upper. Nutlets obovoid, smooth, c. 5 mm.

Fl. Per.: July-August.

Type: [India] Kanaour, Royle.

Distribution: E. Afghanistan, Pakistan, Soviet C. Asia, Tibet.

An unmistakable high alpine scree species; probably more widespread in the mountains than the cited records might indicate. Wendelbo (l.c) noted that it had a strong unpleasant smell.

In the recent Conspectus of Soviet Asiatic flora, Tuljaganova (l.c.) recognizes 3 species, Alajja rhomboidea, Alajja anomala and Alajja afghanica, which here are considered as one.