12. Chasmanthe N. E. Brown, Trans. Roy. Soc. South Africa. 20: 272. 1932.
[Greek chasme, gap, and anthos, flower, alluding to the shape of the flower]
Peter Goldblatt
Herbs, perennial, from corms. Stems simple or branched. Leaves several; blade plane, ensiform. Inflorescences spicate, axes usually lightly flexed, many-flowered; bracts green or purplish, ± equal, coriaceous. Flowers unscented, zygomorphic; tepals connate into tube, orange to scarlet (rarely yellow), unequal, dorsal tepal horizontal, more than 2 times others, other tepals spreading to reflexed; perianth tube slender, cylindric proximally, abruptly expanded, longer, wider, horizontal distally; stamens unilateral, extended horizontally below dorsal tepal; anthers parallel; style arching over filaments, branching opposite to or beyond anthers; branches 3, filiform, shallowly notched apically. Capsules irregularly globose, cartilaginous. Seeds 2–4 per locule, globose; seed coat bright orange, sometimes somewhat fleshy. x = 10.
Species 3 (1 in the flora): introduced; South Africa.
SELECTED REFERENCE
De Vos, M. P. 1985. Revision of the South African genus Chasmanthe (Iridaceae). S. African J. Bot. 51: 253–261.
