Freesia is a genus in the Iridaceae of about 14 species from southern Africa, mostly from the winter rainfall region of South Africa.
Freesia alba is a very fragrant mainly coastal species from the winter rainfall regions growing in sandy or stony soil. It has naturalized in coastal Northern California gardens, but may not be reliably hardy elsewhere. Photos by Bob Rutemoeller and Mary Sue Ittner of flowers that have naturalized in their garden. There is also a picture of a flower with extra petals and one showing the purple backs. The last pictures was taken by Kristina Van Wert from the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens collection.
Photos from Cameron McMaster taken at Hermanus in the Overberg in habitat.
The sport Freesia alba 'Burtonii' arose in New Zealand and is very widely grown there. The flowers are creamy yellow and lack the purple flush in the top petal. This is a photo of a naturalised clump in a garden in Whakatane, NZ, taken on 11th September 05. Photo by Peter Richardson.
Freesia caryophyllacea is a short strongly scented plant with yellow or cream flowers with yellow markings. Photos taken in the Overberg by Cameron McMaster.
Freesia corymbosa grows on stony sandstone slopse in the southeastern Cape. It has yellow, sometimes pink light scented flowers. The first two photos by Cameron McMaster. The next two photos were taken by Mary Sue Ittner of flowers and corms (on a 1 cm. square grid). This species doesn't seem to be very happy in her winter wet Northern California garden, but occasionally blooms.
Freesia fergusoniae has flowers in a horizontal or drooping spike, yellow with orange makings and is sweetly scented. It is found on clay soils in Renosterveld in the southern Cape and blooms late winter to spring. In this picture you can see how it leans over the pot. The second picture was taken in 2008. I'm wondering if it could be a hybrid with Freesia alba which also grows in my garden. This recent one seems a bit more robust than ones I've grown in the past and I started some additional plants from open pollinated seed. Photos by Mary Sue Ittner.
Freesia fucata is an early blooming fragrant species that is white flushed purple with yellow markings. It is found on clay slopes in the renosterveld in the southwest Cape. Grown from Silverhill Seed and blooming December 2003 in Northern California, photos by Bob Rutemoeller.
Freesia grandiflora (syn. Anomatheca grandiflora) taken April 2004 by Lee Poulsen. Although this is a summer rainfall species from KwaZulu-Natal it blooms in spring. The flowers resemble Freesia laxa but are much larger, scarlet with a dark red blotch at the base.
Freesia laxa has been known by many different names (Anomatheca laxa, Anomatheca cruenta, Lapeirousia laxa). It is native to several countries in Africa and is a smaller version of Freesia grandiflora. The most common forms are red with darker blotches flowering late spring and summer. They bloom quickly from their bright red seeds and can be a bit invasive in situations where they are happy as they self sow. Photos #1-5 are by Mary Sue Ittner including seeds and corms on a 1 cm. square grid.
Freesia laxa 'Joan Evans' is a form with white flowers and a red blotch. The second photo shows another white form. Photos by Sheila Burrow.
Freesia laxa subsp. azurea is a form with blue flowers and is often reported as more difficult to grow than some of the others. The first photo is by Sheila Burrow. The second photo is by Diane Whitehead grown from seeds in an unheated glasshouse in April. The seeds came from Sheila Burrow's plants. Notice that the petals have four marks vs. three seen in Sheila's specimen.
Freesia occidentalis grows from 9 to 50 cm high and is found on stony, mainly sandstone soils, from the northwest Cape to the western Karoo. The fragrant flowers are in a horizonatal spike and are creamy white and yellow. Photo by Rod Saunders.
Freesia refracta is found on dry stony slopes and flats. Photos by Bob Rutemoeller, Mary Sue Ittner and Cameron McMaster.
Freesia sparrmannii is a much smaller flowered Freesia that has been reliable in a Northern California garden (in a raised bed) blooming every year but not increasing much. In South Africa it is found in forest margins in loam. Photos by Bob Rutemoeller and Kristina Van Wert from the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens collection.
Freesia verrucosa grows in clay soil in renosterveld in the Karoo mountain center and the southeastern Cape. It blooms late winter into spring. Photo by Bob Rutemoeller of plants grown by Alan Horstmann.
Freesia viridis (syn. Anomatheca viridis) is more of a collector's plant with greenish flowers. It is found on stony clay and limestone, occasionally sandstone in the north and south western Cape and flowers winter into spring. The first photo by Kristina Van Wert is of one in the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens collection. The second photo is by Nhu Nguyen showing the flower and fruits - these fruits seemed to have developed on their own. I haven't noticed any pollinators. The last two images show the same cold frame grown plant blooming (on the left) in 2007 and (on the right) in 2008. Photographed in the Montgomery County, Maryland, USA, USDA zone 7 garden of Jim McKenney. Note the difference in color.
