Hesperantha coccinea

Hesperantha coccinea

Common Names

Rooirivierlelie (afrikaans)
Scarlet river lily, crimson flag (english)
khahlana (sesotho)

Taxonomy

Family IRIDACEAE
Genus Hesperantha
Species coccinea
SA Plant Number
Basionym Hesperantha coccinea

Description

Hesperantha coccinea [=Schizostylis] is a very hardy, mostly evergreen, bulbous plant with a fan of bright-green, strap-like leaves.

It bears showy spikes of large, star-shaped flowers that cluster at the tips of slender stems from December to April. The colors vary from bright-scarlet to soft, pale pink.

It attracts insects to the garden and is a butterfly host plant. The flowers are pollinated by the Mountain Pride Butterfly.

If left for a few years, it forms large clumps and is a sight to behold. Seeing them flowering en masse along streams in the foothills of the Drakensberg is amazing. It makes a good cut flower and a beautiful garden plant, both in wet conditions and in a normally irrigated garden.

Plant in compost-rich soil in wet areas in full sun or light shade.

Size: 30 to 60cm

Wildlife

Insects:
It attracts insects to the garden
Butterfly host:
It is a butterfly host plant .

Uses

Cut flower:
It makes a good cut flower and a beautiful garden plant, both in wet conditions and in a normally irrigated garden.

Distribution

Limpopo, Gauteng, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu Natal, Free State, Eastern. CapeNatural Habitat:

Along rivers and streams

 

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