Gladiolus saccatus leaves

The lower three of the annual leaves of Gladiolus saccatus grow from the base in a fan-shape. They are longer than the stem-leaves, reaching about a third up the stem, seldom to the base of the inflorescence. The stem leaves diverge from it with little or no sheathing, channelled in their upper parts.

The leaves are linear to narrowly lanceolate, with a developed midrib and sometimes one more vein but no thickening of the margins. There may be purple near the leaf bases. Leaf dimensions are about 30 cm long and up to 1,5 cm wide (Manning, 2009; Goldblatt, et al, 1998, iNaturalist).