Sparaxis tricolour Mix

Sparaxis tricolor Mix gathers several varieties of harlequin flowers. It is a South African botanical species. Depending on the cultivation method, flowering occurs in spring or summer. Each plant offers alternate tricoloured star-shaped corollas displaying a range of colours in different combinations of orange, red to pink, or yellow to white, around a yellow heart circled by black. These are semi-hardy perennial plants with corms. They are easy to grow and sometimes naturalise in mild climates, in sunny and light moist soil. They are superb in flowering pots or planted densely in flower beds, rockeries, or in a flowered lawn. Their flowers are very long-lasting in bouquets.

Sparaxis are deciduous perennial plants with corms, originating from rocky slopes in South Africa, more precisely from regions with rainy winters and dry summers. In nature, the tricolour species has winter vegetation and rests in summer in dry soil. Sparaxis are close relatives of gladioli, ixia, and garden irises. They belong to the large Iridaceae family.

In this mix, the flowers come in a range of colours, but all have a black or dark red ring encircling their yellow heart. Planted in autumn in mild climates, this cormous plant flowers in spring, while planting in spring in colder and more humid regions results in summer flowering. In this latter case, the plants should be cultivated like gladioli or overwintered in a greenhouse.

Sparaxis tricolor first forms a tuft 25 to 30cm (10 to 12in) in height, composed of long and slender light green leaves with parallel veins. They are alternate and sword-shaped, resembling iris leaves. Its growth rate is rapid. The deciduous foliage disappears a few weeks after flowering, but persists in winter in mild climates. The thin and rigid flower stalks average 40cm (16in) in height. They emerge between two fan-shaped leaves, from March to July, depending on the cultivation method and climate. In mild climates, it flowers in March-April, and the plant enters dormancy in summer. The flowering takes the form of clusters of 3 to 5 star-shaped cup flowers, with a tubular corolla formed by 6 fused petals. They open in the sun and close in the evening or under grey skies. The corm is semi-hardy, resistant to short frosts of around -5°C (23°F).

In mild climates, Sparaxis tricolour thrives in rockeries, lawns, borders, or very sunny flower beds with well-draining soil where they can easily naturalise. They need soil that remains moist during their growth and flowering period, but dries out during their dormant period. These plants pair well with botanical or early tulips, violets, hyacinths, and crocuses. In rockeries, they bring a radiant note, in the company of catmints, stipa, and pennisetums. Harlequin flowers also make remarkable edging plants, alone or with muscari and ipheion, for example. They are also perfect for garden beds and pots. Growing in containers lets you enjoy their brilliant flowering up close. You can then protect the plants from severe frosts by storing them away.