Drimiopsis is a bulbous genus in the Hyacinthaceae family from tropical and South Africa. Most have oval basal leaves that are spotted and spikes of flowers that are small white or greenish. In J. Manning, P. Goldblatt & M.F. Fay, "A revised generic synopsis of Hyacinthaceae in sub-Saharan Africa, including new combinations and the new tribe Pseudoprospereae", Edinburgh Journal of Botany 60(3): 533-568 (2004) the authors propose sinking this genus into Ledebouria.
Drimiopsis maculata syn. Ledebouria petiolata J. C. Manning & Goldblatt , syn. Scilla schlechteri, is found in grassland among rocks in the Eastern Cape. Leavs are spotted and flowers grey striped pink, white, green or brown, insignificant, but fragrant. This is a shade loving plant that blooms late spring to summer and is relatively hardy. It should be planted just below the surface, protected from snails and be kept on the dry side in winter. These plants were in bloom August 2003 from a September 2001 sowing. As is true with a lot of bulbs whose leaves in later seasons are more colorful than the earlier ones, the original leaves were not very spotted, but the second set appearing in March 2004 are. Photos by Mary Sue Ittner.
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