Watsonia borbonica subsp. ardernei (Sander) Goldblatt APNI* Synonyms: Watsonia ardernei Sander APNI*
Description: Herb to 2 m high; corm 3–4 cm diam., tunic of netted fibres; bulbils absent.
Basal leaves sword-shaped, 60–100 cm long, 2–4 cm wide; midvein prominent.
Spike with few short appressed branches, 20–45 cm long; flowers 2–2.5 c. apart; spathe bracts lanceolate to oblong, 1.6–2.1 cm long, membranous to scarious, reddish. Flowers zygomorphic. Perianth pale to deep pink to light purple or white; tube 3–4 cm long, curved, narrow for c. 1.5 cm at base, broadly funnel-shaped above; lobes spreading, obovate to oblanceolate, acute to apiculate, 2.8–3.5 cm long, 1.2–1.6 cm wide. Style shorter than perianth; branches 4–5 mm long, 2-fid, often further divided.
Capsule ovoid-cylindrical, c. 3 cm long.
Flowering: September–November
Distribution and occurrence: A locally naturalized garden escape, in the Cooranbong area. Native of S Afr.
NSW subdivisions: *CC, *CT
Other Australian states: *Vic. *W.A. *S.A.
The cultivated form commonly has white flowers.
Text by T. A. James & E. A. Brown (1993); edited KL Wilson (Jan 2016)
Taxon concept:
| The single subspecies in NSW. Characters and distribution as for the species in NSW. |
APNI* Provides a link to the Australian Plant Name Index (hosted by the Australian National Botanic Gardens) for comprehensive bibliographic data
***The AVH map option provides a detailed interactive Australia wide distribution map drawn from collections held by all major Australian herbaria participating in the Australian Virtual Herbarium project.
|
