Gladiolus rogersii Baker

Plants (200-)300-500(-650) mm high, with cataphylls purple or mottled with white or dry and dark brown, sometimes minutely velvety. Corm globose, 8-14 mm diam.; tunics usually papery or finely fibrous, occasionally fibres of medium texture, rarely coarse and claw-like below. Stem erect below, flexed outward above sheaths of 2 upper leaves and inclined above, unbranched. Leaves 3 or 4(5), lowermost or lower 2 reaching base or exceeding spike, linear (rarely ± ellipsoid in section), 1.5-4.0(-6.5) mm wide, straight, soft-textured to somewhat wiry, margins and main vein lightly to heavily thickened, cauline leaves inserted well above ground, progressively shorter, uppermost sometimes entirely sheathing, margins usually united below. Spike inclined, (1)3-to 6-flowered; bracts green or flushed grey to purple with broad, transparent margins, diverging, outer 15-22 mm long, inner slightly smaller, minutely forked. Flowers inflated and bell-like, pale to dark blue or purple, darker on reverse of upper tepals, lower tepals lightly spotted with purple in lower 1/2 and with transverse or median yellow to white mark in upper 1/3 outlined or surrounded with dark blue to purple, usually lightly sweet-scented; perianth tube obliquely funnel-shaped, geniculate, 12-19 mm long, lower half erect and cylindric, upper half bent at right-angles and flaring outward; tepals with upper ovate, lower spathulate, dorsal largest, extending horizontally over stamens, obovate, 20-30 x 16-26 mm, upper laterals slightly shorter, curving slightly outward apically, lower 3 cupped with apices directed forward or downward, united for 5-9 mm with upper laterals, free parts 16-22 x 8-16 mm, not clearly divided into limb and claw, broadly obtuse or emarginate margins curved upward distally. Filaments 10-12(-15) mm long, exserted 5-8 mm from tube; anthers 5.5-9.0 mm long, blue; pollen cream-coloured. Style arching over stamens, dividing close to anther apices, branches ± 4 mm long. Capsules and seeds unknown.