Published In:
Linnaea 34: 672. 1866. ( Linnaea)   
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(Last Modified On 6/6/2016)
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Acceptance
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Accepted
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(Last Modified On 12/7/2016)
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Description:
Small to medium-sized deciduous geophytes. Corm subglobose to narrowly conical, axial in origin; tunics of pale, fine to coarse, netted fibres. Cataphylls up to 3, papery. Leaves 4–13, lower 3–11 ± basal and suberect to prostrate, unifacial, linear-lanceolate to lanceolate, falcate or oblong, acute to obtuse, main vein lightly to moderately thickened, usually plane, rarely undulate or crisped (F. viridis subsp. crispifolia), uppermost 1 or 2 leaves cauline, usually without blade; margin without vascular bundle, epidermis cells columnar with thickened walls. Stem erect or shortly decumbent, usually terete but flattened and winged in F. viridis, often branched, smooth or sparsely to densely papillate. Inflorescence a spike, usually branched, rachis ± deflexed and inclined or horizontal, secund and ± scalloped; bracts either firm-textured and green with narrow, hyaline margin, or pale and papery or membranous and then usually tipped dark brown, acute, apiculate or tricuspidate, inner smaller and strongly 2-veined, forked apically. Flowers weakly to strongly zygomorphic, long-lived, either ± salver-shaped or funnel-shaped and bilabiate, mostly white or cream to pale yellow, often flushed purple on reverse, but also pink, red or green to brown, lower tepals often with yellow to orange lateral nectar guides, often fragrant, nectar from septal nectaries; perianth tube either subcylindric and expanding slightly and evenly from base or near apex, or funnel-shaped and narrowly tubular below but ± abruptly expanded near middle into a broadly cylindric or flared distal part; tepals subequal or upper larger and sometimes hooded, oblong to lanceolate, inner tepals often oblong or ovate-cordate. Stamens unilateral, usually inserted at base of broader distal part of tube or near mouth of tube, usually included but sometimes exserted. Ovary ellipsoid; style filiform, 3-branched distally, branches deeply divided, longitudinally folded, recurved. Capsules cartilaginous, subglobose to oblong, 3-lobed, rough and papillate to verrucose in upper 1/2 or thoughout. Seeds subglobose, sometimes with raphe and chalaza inflated, smooth or wrinkled, testa dry and glossy reddish brown, rarely bright orange to red when fresh. Pollen monosulcate-operculate, operculum 1 (F. viridis only) or 2-banded, exine perforate-scabrate. Basic chromosome number: x = 11.
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Etymology:
named after Dr Friedrich Heinrich Theodor Freese, a physician at Kiel, Germany, and friend of C.F. Ecklon, nineteenth century plant collector.
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General Notes:
Species 16, mainly winter-rainfall southern Africa but extending into eastern subtropical and tropical Africa.
Intially restricted to the often highly fragrant species with funnel-shaped flowers but now including several unrelated species with salver-shaped flowers previously segregated as the genus Anomatheca. The genus is distinguished by the often narrowly conical corms with finely netted tunics, mostly soft-textured leaves with the marginal epidermal cells columnar and thickened, an inclined or horizontal and ± scalloped spike, deeply divided style branches, ± distinctive ± papillate or verrucose capsules, and subglobose seeds with smooth, glossy testa.
The genus is ectremely popular in the cut-flower trade, with numerous named cultivars. These have all been derived from repeated crossing of colour forms of just two species, F. corymbosa and F. leichtlinii (subsp. alba and subsp. leichtlinii).
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1
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Flowers ± salver- or trumpet-shaped with floral tube slender and cylindric throughout or widening gradually from base, 1–3 mm diam. at mouth; tepals subequal and ± spreading or recurved, without extensive yellow markings; stamens inserted in upper 5 mm of floral tube
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(2)
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+
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Flowers funnel-shaped, floral tube with narrowly tubular lower portion ± abruptly expanded into broadly cylindric distal portion, 5–15 mm diam. at mouth; stamens inserted near middle or in lower half of tube, at junction between lower and upper portions; lower tepals usually with extensive yellow markings
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(5)
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2 (1)
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Stem 2-angled or -winged; floral tube sharply bent in upper part and mouth facing down; flowers green or brownish; anthers included
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Freesia viridis
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+
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Stem terete; floral tube straight or slightly curved, mouth facing sidways or upwards; flowers white, mauve, pink or red; anthers exserted
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(3)
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3 (2)
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Leaves < 100 mm long, much shorter than inflorescence, oblong, obtuse-apiculate; bracts 4.0–5.5 mm long; perianth tube 15–20 mm long; flowers predominantly pink
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Freesia verrucosa
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+
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usually > 100 mm long, often as long as or longer than inflorescence, linear-lanceolate to lanceolate, acute-apiculate; bracts (4–)5–20 mm long; perianth tube 20–40 mm long; flowers red, pink, pale blue or white
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(4)
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4 (3)
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Perianth > twice as long as tepals; upper tepal 9–15 mm long; filaments 3–4 mm long, scarcely exserted
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Freesia laxa
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+
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Perianth tube ± as long as tepals or slightly longer; upper tepal 22–32 mm long; filaments 15–25 mm long, exserted 10–20 mm
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Freesia grandiflora
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5 (1)
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Floral bracts thin-textured, membranous or papery, pale green or translucent and dry, usually with dark tips; stems smooth; seeds subglobose, without inflated raphe
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(6)
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+
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Floral bracts firm-textured or leathery, green with narrow membranous margins; stems puberulous or papillate, at least toward base; seeds obliquely globose, with inflated raphe
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(10)
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6 (5)
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Bracts 7–13 mm long; flowers normally 50–65 mm long; filaments 18–32 mm long
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(7)
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+
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Bracts 4–8 mm long; flowers normally 25–40 mm long; filaments 10–14 mm long
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(8)
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7 (6)
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Leaves 100–200 mm long, acute; flowers white to cream, boldly marked with purple lines in throat; tepals ovate to elliptic; filaments 18–25 mm long
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Freesia andersoniae
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+
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Leaves 25–100 mm long, obtuse or subacute; flowers pale yellow, plain or with pale purple lines in throat; tepals suborbicular; filaments 27–33 mm long
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Freesia speciosa
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8 (6)
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Bracts uniformly pale; leaves usually ± as long as stem
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Freesia refracta
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+
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Bracts brown-tipped; leaves usually ± half as long as stem
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(9)
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9 (8)
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Leaves obtuse or subacute, (5–)7–18(–25) mm wide; bracts lightly tipped with dark brown; flowers white or cream, sometimes flushed pale lilac or mauve
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Freesia occidentalis
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+
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Leaves acute to acuminate, 2–7(–10) mm wide; bracts with pronounced dark brown tips; flowers usually pale yellow sometimes flushed dull purple, or pale to deep pink
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Freesia corymbosa
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10 (5)
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Floral tube narrowly funnel-shaped, lower portion 12–15 mm long and ± as long as or slightly longer than upper portion; lower tepals 4–5 mm wide; flowers unscented
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Freesia sparrmanii
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+
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Floral tube funnel-shaped, lower portion ± half as long as upper portion; lower tepals 5–12 mm wide; flowers always fragrant
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(11)
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11 (10)
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Plants usually with deeply buried corms, bearing cormlets in one or more lower leaf axil; plants coastal in sandy soils
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Freesia leichtlinii
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+
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Plants with shallow corms, bearing cormlets at base of parent corm, never in leaf axils; plants inland in loamy or clay soils
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(12)
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12 (11)
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Corm tunics of soft, thin-textured fibres (< 0.1 mm diam.); flowers mostly with yellow or orange markings on lower median tepal only; flowering June–July
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Freesia praecox
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+
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Corm tunics of wiry, coarse-textured fibres (at least some > 0.2 mm diam.); flowers mostly with yellow or orange markings on all three lower tepals
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(13)
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13 (12)
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Flowers creamy yellow or bright yellow; number of leaves (5–)7–13; flowering (June) July to August
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Freesia fergusoniae
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+
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Flowers white; number of leaves 4–7(–9); flowering April to July
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(14)
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14 (13)
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Leaves erect, glaucous, acuminate, 4–5 mm wide
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Freesia fucata
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+
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Leaves erect or prostrate, green or glaucous, subacute to acute, 6–15(–20) mm wide
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(15)
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15 (14)
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Leaves medium-textured, with prominent main vein but no evident submarginal vein
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Freesia caryophyllacea
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+
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Leaves firm-textured and leathery, with inconspicuous main vein and prominent submarginal vein
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Freesia marginata
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