Variable, sturdy and branched shrublet up to 40cm with whitish, hairy stems. Leaves, often in tufts, are narrow and incurved with prickly comb-like teeth; blue to blue-grey (sometimes white) bell-shaped flowers, 2-5cm long; lobes are often marked with dark blotches; flowers solitary or in groups of 2-3; flowers emerge from a bulging cluster of greenish leaf-like bracts with coarse white bristles. Flowers more profusely after fire.

There are ± 21 spp. in S Africa, mostly in SW Cape. 4 species occur in Fernkloof.

After: W. Roell (1700-1775), Dutch professor of anatomy and horticulturist.