Wachendorfia brachyandra is a small to large, 10–65 cm (3.9–25.6 in) high, winter-growing, perennial herbaceous plant that grows from a rootstock, and has been assigned to the bloodroot family.

Its simple, entire, line- to lance-shaped leaves that are usually shorter than the stem, and have pleated, laterally flattened leaf blades af about 35 mm (1.4 in) wide, meaning that there are left and right surfaces rather than upper and lower.

This species grows in the wild in the Western Cape province of South Africa only, and is much less common than its relatives W. paniculata and W. thyrsiflora.

Unique for this Wachendorfia species is that the three stamens are clustered, not spreading, and at 6–14 mm (0.24–0.55 in) only about half as long as tepals.

W. multiflora is a smaller plant of up to 25 cm (9.8 in) high, with leaves that are usually longer than the very short and dense inflorescence, with green, erect bracts, dull yellow, later purplish brown flowers with narrow tepals, 15–25 mm (0.59–0.98 in) long and 3–6 mm (0.12–0.24 in) wide.

[2] The genus Wachendorfia is named in honor of Evert Jacob van Wachendorff, professor of botany and chemistry and later rector at the University of Utrecht in the 18th century.

It grows in seasonally moist sandstone or granite soils, at 50–650 m (160–2,130 ft) altitude, in an area with predominant precipitation during the winter half year.