Gladiolus Flevo Vito - Sword Lily

The Gladiolus 'Flevo Vito' is a new variety of hybrid gladiolus that is not very tall, but has an exceptionally vibrant flowering in red and gold. Its well-formed flower spikes, both slender and sturdy, bear bright flowers that do not go unnoticed in the garden and allow for fantastic bouquets to be created. It blooms in grand style from July until September-October: pair it with the plumes of grasses or the feathery foliage of fennel as its companions.

Cultivated gladioli are hybrids and belong to the Iridaceae family. They are divided into 3 main groups: Grandiflorus (large-flowered), Primulinus (early-flowering), and Nanus (butterfly). 'Flevo Vito', registered in 2008, belongs to the Nanus group, characterised by rather small and often spotted flowers, irregularly arranged on stems that are 60 to 70 cm (24 to 28in) tall, each bearing up to 20 florets. The upper petal of each flower has a curved helmet-like shape.

'Flevo Vito' is a recent cultivar, derived among others from the Gladiolus papilio, a species native to the marshy and mountainous areas of the Drakensberg in South Africa. It is a perennial and deciduous herbaceous plant with stoloniferous and tuberous roots. Its foliage consists of thin, rather short, sword-shaped leaves of a green-grey colour, arranged in a fan shape and forming a clump about 45 cm (18in) tall. The leaves are topped by a flower stem about 70 cm (28in) tall, which ends in a spike with numerous buds. The hooded flowers resemble those of certain orchids or even cannas and are borne on very slender stems. Here, they are of an intense and deep red, with each petal crossed by a yellow spot that becomes diffuse. The storage organ is a corm, which is a swollen stem with scales. Each corm will produce 2 or 3 flower spikes.

The Gladiolus 'Flevo Vito' has a good chance of changing the perception of detractors of this plant, often considered stiff and lacking elegance to the point where it is relegated to the vegetable garden for cut flowers. Gladioli and their long colourful spikes are a symbol of the 70s and somewhat formal floral arrangements. While they are irreplaceable in bouquets, in gardens, their silhouette needs the company of plants with lush foliage that will enhance their flowering. Plant 'Flevo Vito' among beds of grasses, forget-me-nots, and perennial flax, for example. Play with white for elegance and add silver foliage here and there. For making bouquets, cut the flower spikes when the first floret starts to open.

The gladiolus gets its name from the shape of its sword-like leaves, derived from the Latin word gladius. Its wild forms were often depicted in jewelry or on carpets and fabrics made by the Semitic people before the Christian era.