Watsonia

Deciduous or sometimes evergreen perennials. Rootstock a globose or depressed-globose corm rooting from below, axillary in origin, those of past seasons often not resorbed, tunics coriaceous, with age becoming fibrous. Stem aerial, usually branched, round in section. Leaves several, lower 2 or 3 cataphylls; foliage leaves unifacial, with a definite midrib, coriaceous and fibrotic, mostly basal, plane, margins and midribs often thickened and prominent, cauline leaves smaller than basal and progressively reduced above. Inflorescence a simple or branched spike, flowers distichously arranged; bracts firm-textured, green or partly to completely dry at anthesis, inner smaller, as long or longer than outer, usually forked apically. Flowers zygomorphic, actinomorphic in one species, shades of pink, orange or red, rarely cream to pale yellow, sometimes with contrasting markings on lower tepals, unscented, with nectar from septal nectaries; perianth tube slightly to strongly curved, lower part cylindric, upper part flared or broad and cylindric. Tepals subequal. Stamens symmetrically disposed or unilateral and then arcuate or declinate; filaments arising in throat; anthers exserted; pollen monosulcate, operculate, exine perforate. Style filiform, exserted, branches forked for half their length and recurved. Capsules globose to oblong or elongate, sometimes fusiform, coriaceous to woody. Seeds large, angular or compressed and winged at chalazal end or at both ends, sometimes ribbed, matte, surface areolate. x = 9.