Gonialoe variegata (L.) Boatwr. & J.C.Manning

Plants acaulescent, very stoloniferous, soon forming dense groups of rosettes which are sometimes elongated and 20 cm and more high. Leaves densely imbricate, arranged in 3 ranks of 6-8 leaves each, sometimes with a spiral twist, lanceolate-deltoid, about 10-15 cm long, 4-6 cm broad; upper surface broadly canaliculate low down, somewhat broadly 'V' shaped nearer apex, usually green, with oblong white spots in irregular transverse bands; lower surface rounded low down, 'V' keeled in upper half, the keel rather white, somewhat corneous, with minute notches rather than teeth, green, with numerous small to larger oblong white spots arranged in irregular transverse bands; margins whitish, corneous, crenate-dentate. Inflorescence simple or 1-2 branched, about 30 cm high, up to 6 from a rosette. Peduncle fleshy, rather soft, brownish, sparingly sterile-bracteate; the bracts broadly deltoid-acuminate, thin, scarious, white 1-nerved. Racemes 10-20 cm long, cylindrical, rather laxly about 20-30-flowered. Bracts white, very thin, scarious, ovate-acuminate, up to 15 mm long, 7 mm broad, about twice as long as the pedicels, 1-nerved, the nerve brownish, greenish-brown, or sometimes slightly pink. Pedicels 4-7 mm long, dull reddish. Perianth 35-45 mm long (38-40 mm the average), cylindric-decurved, slightly constricted above the ovary, thence slightly enlarging, with wide open mouth, varying in colour from flesh-pink to dull scarlet, usually paler underneath; outer segments free for 5-7 mm,, with 3 obscure nerves confluent at apex: inner segments themselves free to base, but dorsally adnate to the outer for their greater length, and with more obtuse more spreading apices. Filaments filiform-flattened, pale rose. Anthers not or very shortly (1-2 mm) exserted. Style pale rose, with the stigma at length exserted 1-2 mm. Ovary 5-6 mm long, 3 mm diam., finely 6-grooved, green to reddish-brown. Seeds large, broadly winged. Flowers mostly in September.

Can be grown by seedlings.