Ixia polystachya from the side

The Ixia polystachya inflorescence in profile shows the thread-like, pale beige corolla tubes below the spreading corolla lobes. These tubes may vary in length from 5 mm to 15 mm.

Each flower is subtended by a pair of short, whitish, translucent bracts with toothed tips. The inferior ovary, covered by the bracts, has three locules.

The specific name, polystachya, is derived from the Greek words polys meaning many and stachys meaning an ear of corn, referring to the branched flower spikes that indicating profuse flower and fruit production (Manning, 2007; Leistner, (Ed.), 2000; Andrew, 2017; iNaturalist).