Babiana stricta
{{Short description|Species of flowering plant}}
{{Speciesbox
|image = Madeira, Palheiro Gardens - Babiana stricta IMG 2253.JPG
|image_caption =
|genus = Babiana
|species = stricta
|authority = (Aiton) Ker Gawl.
}}
Babiana stricta, the baboon flower{{GRIN}} or blue freesia, is a species of flowering plant in the family Iridaceae, native to Cape Province, South Africa and naturalized in Australia.[http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/namedetail.do?name_id=326788 Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families]
Description
Growing {{convert|10|-|30|cm|0|abbr=on}} tall by {{convert|5|cm|0|abbr=on}} broad, it is a cormous perennial with hairy leaves {{convert|4|-|12|cm|0|abbr=on}} long.{{cite book|title=RHS A-Z encyclopedia of garden plants|year=2008|publisher=Dorling Kindersley|location=United Kingdom|isbn=978-1405332965|pages=1136}} The leaves show linear venation. It is a bulb-like plant that produces upright fans of pleated, slightly hairy, and sword-shaped 6 inch leaves. The leaves emerge in mid-winter and are followed by short spikes with blue or purple cup-shaped flowers in the spring. The flowers usually bloom for 3 or 4 weeks, after that, the leaves and flowers die.{{Cite web |title=Babiana stricta, Baboon Flower, Bulb/Tuber/Rhizome etc., |url=https://www.smgrowers.com/products/plants/plantdisplay.asp?cat_id=3&plant_id=204&page= |access-date=2023-11-01 |website=www.smgrowers.com}}
The specific epithet stricta means "erect, upright".{{cite book|last=Harrison|first=Lorraine|title=RHS Latin for gardeners|year=2012|publisher=Mitchell Beazley|location=United Kingdom|isbn=9781845337315|pages=224}}
Cultivation
There are many hybrids and cultivars with different colored flowers, usually blue or pink with white additions. In mid- to late spring, each flowering stem produces six or more blooms, each to {{convert|5|cm|0|abbr=on}} across. They are grouped in an inflorescence and often have a pleasant lemon scent. The seeds are black with a hard coat, collected in round seed capsules.Goldblatt, P. & Manning, J.C. (2007). A revision of the southern African genus Babiana, Iridaceae: Crocoideae. Strelitzia 18: 1-98. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
Babiana stricta is tender (USDA Zones 8–10){{Cite web |url=http://hirts-gardens.hostedbywebstore.com/Baboon-Flower-Bulbs-Babiana-Hybrids/dp/B0015KKMNE |title=Hirt's Gardens |access-date=2012-04-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304025038/http://hirts-gardens.hostedbywebstore.com/Baboon-Flower-Bulbs-Babiana-Hybrids/dp/B0015KKMNE |archive-date=2016-03-04 |url-status=dead }} and in temperate zones is planted in containers and stored in winter at {{convert|5|C|F|abbr=on}}.[http://www.vanmeuwen.com/flowers/flower-bulbs/other-flower-bulbs/babiana-kew-hybrids/70001VM Van Meuwen]
This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.{{cite web|title=RHS Plant Selector - Babiana stricta|url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/68713/Babiana-stricta/Details | access-date=15 April 2020}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{AfricanPlants|Babiana stricta}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q4352484}}
Category:Endemic flora of the Cape Provinces
Category:Garden plants of Southern Africa
Category:Plants described in 1789
{{Iridaceae-stub}}