Aloes and Lilies of Ethiopia and Eritrea

212 COLCHICACEAE
- Flowers solitary or 3–10 in a lax scorpioid arrangement on the stem; perianth
without a claw; stamens not attached to the perianth segments; pedicels
present 5. Iphigenia
Key to the species
1. GLORIOSA L.
The genus includes climbing geophytes with rhizome­like
corms and scandent stems. The leaves are scattered along
the stem, sessile, alternate or whorled, simple, ovate,
attenuated into a terminally recurved tendril. The flowers
are axillary on long pedicels. The perianth segments are
free, equal, narrowly ovate­acuminate, entire or crispid,
re flexed, yellow or red. The stamens have firm, spreading
filaments. The style is filiform, bent sharply outwards at
its base, with 3 short stigmatic branches.
The genus is easily recognised from the other members
of the family, mainly by its scandent habit, conspicuous
and attractive mixture of yellow, orange, and red flowers
and leaves ending in tendrils. It is closely related to
Littonia, from which it is easily distinguished by the
sharply bending style in contrast to the straight style in
Littonia.
The genus consists of two species, both of which
occur in Ethiopia. Many tend to merge these two species
into one as G. superba, but we believe the two species
are distinct.
1. Climbing herb; leaf-blade 1.3–6 cm wide; stamens with filaments 2.2–3 cm
long; style with deeply divided stigma, 4–12 mm long 1. G. superba
- Erect herb; leaf-blade 0.2–0.8 cm wide; stamens with filaments 1.2–2.3 cm
long; style with shallowly divided stigma, 1.5–2(–3) mm long 2. G. baudii
Gloriosa superba
1. Gloriosa superba L.
The specific epithet ‘superba’ refers to the beautiful
(superb) flowers. It was described by Linnaeus in 1753
from a plant collected from Malabaria, India by Hermann.
It was also commonly known by the name G.
simplex L.