Gladiolus monticola Goldblatt & J.C.Manning

Plants 300-450 mm high. Corm globose, 20-25 mm diam.; tunics of fairly coarse to fine fibres. Stem erect, lightly flexed outward above sheath of uppermost leaf, unbranched. Leaves 2, not overlapping, largely to entirely sheathing, lowermost inserted shortly above ground, occasionally with short blade up to 30 mm long, linear, smooth or sparsely and shortly pubescent; foliage leaf produced later in season, solitary, linear to narrowly sword-shaped, pubescent, dry and decayed at flowering time or lacking. Spike slightly inclined, lightly flexuose, 3-to 9-flowered; bracts grey-green, flushed purple on upper surface, 15-24 mm long, inner shorter. Flowers pale apricot-to cream-coloured, upper tepals flushed pale pink, lower tepals with yellow median stripe often outlined in dark pink, unscented; perianth tube 22-30 mm long, cylindric below, curved abruptly near apex, upper 6-8 mm horizontal and flaring outward; tepals lanceolate, unequal, dorsal largest, 20-25 x 10-12 mm, upper laterals 18-20 x 8-10 mm, lower 3 tepals united below for ± 5 mm, 15-18 x 6-8 mm. Filaments ± 12 mm long, exserted ± 4-5 mm from tube but enclosed by tepals; anthers 6-7 mm long. Style dividing at or just beyond anther apices, branches ± 4 mm long. Capsules ovoid-ellipsoid, 11-13 mm long. Seeds oblong, 6-7 x ± 4 mm, evenly winged.