Home | > | List of families | > | Iridaceae | > | Gladiolus | > | atropurpureus |
Synonyms: |
Gladiolus caerulescens Baker Gladiolus flexuosus Baker Gladiolus gracilicaulis G.J. Lewis Gladiolus luridus Welw. ex Baker Gladiolus whytei Baker |
Common names: | |
Frequency: | |
Status: | Native |
Description: |
Perennial herb, growing from corms. Foliage leaves develop separately, normally after flowering. Flowers colour variable. Normally deep purple but almost white forms do occur. The lower lateral tepals are always marked with dark purple, spear-shaped markings. |
Notes: | This species, particularly the light-coloured form is often confused with G. unguiculatus. The latter can be distinguished by the clear "windows", formed by the non-overlapping upper tepals. The corms of G. atropurpureus are smaller and covered in distinct "skirts" of thickened fibres, while the much larger corms of G. unguiculatus have a finely fibrous, reddish covering. |
Derivation of specific name: | atropurpureus: dark purple |
Habitat: | In woodland and sub-montane grassland, often in rocky places. |
Altitude range: (metres) | |
Flowering time: | Nov - Dec |
Worldwide distribution: | Angola, Southeastern DRC, Burundi, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe. |
Zimbabwe distribution: | N,C,E |
Growth form(s): | |
Endemic status: | |
Red data list status: | |
Insects associated with this species: | |
Spot characters: | Display spot characters for this species |
Images last updated: | Sunday 6 January 2019 |
Literature: |
Bandeira, S., Bolnick, D. & Barbosa, F. (2007). Wild Flowers of Southern Mozambique Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, Maputo, Mozambique Page 71. (Includes a picture). Baumann, G. (2005). Photographic Guide to Wildflowers of Malawi Wildlife and Environmental Society of Malawi Pages 210 - 211. (Includes a picture). Fabian, A. & Germishuizen, G. (1997). Wild Flowers of Northern South Africa. Fernwood Press, Vlaeburg. Pages 86 - 87. (Includes a picture). Goldblatt, P. (1993). Iridaceae Flora Zambesiaca 12(4) Pages 80 - 82. (Includes a picture). Goldblatt, P. (1996). Gladiolus in Tropical Africa Timber Press. Portland, Oregon. Pages 126 - 130. (Includes a picture). Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 92. Moriarty, A. (1975). Wild Flowers of Malawi Purnell & sons Cape Town. Page 16. Strugnell, A.M. (2006). A Checklist of the Spermatophytes of Mount Mulanje, Malawi Scripta Botanica Belgica 34 National Botanic Garden of Belgium Page 110. Wursten, B., Timberlake, J. & Darbyshire, I. (2017). The Chimanimani Mountains: an updated checklist. Kirkia 19(1) Page 83. |
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