Gladiolus equitans flower

Gladiolus equitans bears three to eight scarlet or bright orange flowers with variable yellow markings on the small lateral lower tepals, reminiscent of the kalkoentjie (G. alatus) of the Western Cape. These flowers are slightly fragrant in the morning.

The perianth tube is obliquely funnel-shaped, up to 1,5 cm long, greenish inside the flower base. The tepals are unequal, the two-lipped flower laterally symmetrical. The dorsal tepal in picture shows its pale, orange-red, veined outer surface, hooded over stamens and style. The lower three tepals are joined at the base for up to 5 mm.

Flowering happens late in winter and early in spring (Goldblatt and Manning, 1998; Le Roux, et al, 2005; Eliovson, 1990; iNaturalist; www.pacificbulbsociety.org).