Gladiolus permeabilis, a modest start

Gladiolus permeabilis usually grows four to seven narrow, strap-shaped leaves in a distichous fan. The rigid blades have raised midribs and sometimes slight thickening of the margins. They are only 2 mm to 3 mm wide and sheathe at the base. The leaves are present at bloom-time.

The two subspecies of G. permeabilis, subsp. edulis and subsp. permeabilis, overlap geographically in the Western Cape, where the photo of this solitary leaf was taken at Minwater near Oudtshoorn.

Neither subspecies is considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century (Goldblatt and Manning, 1998; http://redlist.sanbi.org).