The name of this peculiar species was chosen in honor of the British nurseryman William Nelson who first discovered the exemplar. It is a succulent characterized by a spherical bulb partially underground from which, during the vegetative season, soft ribbon-shaped leaves depart, strongly pointed at the apex and gently concave, that tend with growth to fall down giving rise to a large and shiny tuft of grass. Its emerald green is extremely shiny and finely adorned with central clusters and well-laid white flowers that exude delicious almond aromas. A curiosity: this succulent is commonly called also "slime lily", in reference to the viscous sap present inside the foliage and the floral stems, used in the past by native populations for food or as an ingredient for traditional medicine remedies!