Virgilia oroboides buds

The buds of Virgilia oroboides start off in calyces that open two-lipped and five-lobed or -toothed when the corollas emerge. The cup-shaped and laterally compressed calyces end in pointed sepal lobes that clutch the corolla bases, their surfaces velvety grey. The calyx lobes are longer than the basal tube.

The calyces form crescent-shaped buds with the emerging, furled petals, initially deeper coloured than the pale petals of open flowers (Venter, 2012; Coates Palgrave, 2002; Leistner, (Ed.), 2000; Rycroft, 1980; iNaturalist).