Gladiolus dalenii Van Geel APNI* Description: Herb 60–120[-200] cm high; corm 20–30 mm diam., tunic brittle, irregularly fibrous, usually with numerous tiny cormlets at base.
Basal leaves linear, 25–60 cm long,10–25 mm wide, midvein and margins prominent.
Scape sheathed by 2 or 3 reduced leaves; spike secund, 2–7(-14)-flowered; spathe bracts 3–7 cm long; inner slightly smaller. Flowers unscented. Perianth red to orange often with yellow marks on outer tepals, or yellow (then often with many red to brown speckles on tepals); tube more or less cylindrical, curving outwards in distal half, 3.5–5 cm long; lobes broadly elliptic; dorsal lobe strongly hooded; upper 3 broadly elliptic, 3–5 cm long, 2–3 cm wide; lower 3 much smaller, 2–3 cm long. Style branches 4–6 mm long, branching near top of anthers.
Capsule 2.5–3.5 cm long; seeds 8–12 mm long, pale brown.
Flowering: Spring–summer
Distribution and occurrence: Cultivated as an ornamental; occasionally a garden escape or naturalised, e.g. in Blue Mountains near Bullaburra and Wentworth Falls, and near Inverell. Native to sub-Saharan Africa, Madagascar and highlands of Arabia.
NSW subdivisions: *CT, *NWS
One of the common parents in garden hybrid gladioli.
Text by KL Wilson (Oct 2015)
Taxon concept: P Goldblatt, Flora of North America 26 (2002)
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.
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