Gladiolus papillo

Corrected from a typo ("papillo"), Gladiolus papilio, the butterfly gladiolus, is native to South Africa, growing in wetlands and marshes from the Eastern Cape through KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and the eastern Free State, as well as in Lesotho and Eswatini. This stoloniferous, cormous perennial forms dense colonies via its creeping rhizomes. The arching stems, with narrow grey-green leaves, reach 60 to 90 cm and carry up to ten nodding flowers, yellow or white suffused with violet, with darker yellow patches on the lower tepals resembling butterfly wings. It flowers in late summer and autumn. Grow in cool to moist soil, in a sunny position.