Plant
With broad, thick, ribbed, very long, often reddish leaves which lie along the ground. Flowers in long open or dense and pyramidal spikes.
Flowers
Usually white, tinged bluish, sometimes pink. Column white with a dark (rarely yellow) top. Top rounded, margin yellow scarcely notched, inrolled. Column arms with short, dense, tangled, white, sometimes creamy (cotton ball) cilia.
Flowering
October - December.
Habitat
Lowland to alpine clays, in forest, scrub, grassland, sunny banks and tracksides.
Conservation
Widespread, very common, often abundant; not threatened.
Notes
Considerable variation suggests several taxa. Some are more like T. pauciflora with arched leaves, except the flowers are white. Intermediate forms suggest hybridisation. Flowers may depend on fine hot conditions all may open. Some are scented. Three forms have been tagged T. “Whakapapa”, T. “Mangawhai” and T. “fusca”.
Key features
Column top rounded black with a then usually yellow tipped rounded margin; leaves strongly ribbed, broad, lax, although a common form has consierably narrower flat leaves.
