Common name: false freesia
Freesia laxa (Thunb.) Goldblatt & J.C.Manning APNI* Synonyms: Anomatheca laxa (Thunb.) Goldblatt APNI*
Lapeirousia laxa (Thunb.) N.E.Br. APNI*
Description: Herb to 30 cm high; corm conical, round-based, c. 10 mm diam.
Basal leaves linear, sword-shaped, 10–30 cm long, 3–6 mm wide, glabrous; midvein prominent.
Scape terete, often shorter than leaves; spike unbranched, 3–10-flowered; spathe bracts ovate, 5–7 mm long. Perianth pink or pale blue; tube slender, slightly widened at apex, 15–25 mm long; lobes subequal, ovate to oblong, 7–12 mm long, spreading, the lower 3 marked with red or purple.
Capsule c. 12 mm long, 8–10 mm wide, surface smooth to rough and papillate; seeds c. 1 mm diam., round, lustrous, dark red.
Flowering: October–December
Distribution and occurrence: Grows on disturbed ground, along roadsides etc.; naturalized locally in Sydney and North Coast. Native of S Afr.
NSW subdivisions: *NC, *CC
Other Australian states: *Qld
Text by T. A. James & E. A. Brown
Taxon concept: Flora of NSW 4 (1993) as Anomatheca laxa
APNI* Provides a link to the Australian Plant Name Index (hosted by the Australian National Botanic Gardens) for comprehensive bibliographic data
***The AVH map option provides a detailed interactive Australia wide distribution map drawn from collections held by all major Australian herbaria participating in the Australian Virtual Herbarium project.
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