Genus: Gladiolus

Life > eukaryotes > Archaeoplastida > Chloroplastida > Charophyta > Streptophytina > Plantae (land plants) > Tracheophyta (vascular plants) > Euphyllophyta > Lignophyta (woody plants) > Spermatophyta (seed plants) > Angiospermae (flowering plants) > Monocotyledons >  Order: Asparagales >  Family: Iridaceae

Gladiolus sp., photographed in renosterveld near Bot River Lagoon (Western Cape, South Africa)

About 260 species, with a distribution extending from South Africa, through tropical Africa and Madagascar to Europe and the Middle East. About 165 species are found in southern Africa, mainly in the Western Cape and eastern highlands. 

Publications

• Goldblatt, P. & Manning, J.C. 1998. Gladiolus in Southern Africa: Systematics, Biology and Evolution. Fernwood Press, Cape Town.