Growing freesias

Freesias are renowned for their bright colours, elegant shape and rich fragrance. They make a cheerful display in a garden and are also in demand as cut flowers. They are highly popular for wedding bouquets.

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Freesias are indigenous to the Western and Eastern Cape, and the eastern regions of Southern Africa. They belong to the large and diverse Iridaceae family of about 1 800 species distributed all over the world. There are approximately 16 freesia species in all, and literally hundreds of hybrids in a wide variety of colours. Most of these hybrids, however, originate from Freesia leichtlinii subsp. alba (formerly F. alba) and three or four other freesia species.

The focus of this article is F. leichtlinii subsp. alba, called the white freesia or wild freesia. Its natural habitat is in the Western Cape, mainly along the coast between Hermanus and Plettenberg Bay, where it is found in sandy or stony soils amongst dune scrub or at forest edges, usually in light shade. It also occurs in damp places near water. The flowers are white, often with a purple flush and/or yellow marks, very fragrant (more so than any other freesia species), and 1cm to 2,5cm in diameter. They are funnel-shaped, hence the Afrikaans name for the plant, ruikpypie.

The leaves are narrow with a length of 10cm to 30cm and the stem is sparsely branched and reaches between 10cm and 40cm in height.

TEMPERATURE AND SUNLIGHT

The plant needs about 25mm of irrigation a week during active growth periods. It sprouts in autumn and flowers in winter at the relatively low temperature of 8°C to 10°C. Freesia seeds must be exposed to heat in order to germinate; the optimal temperature is between 20°C and 22°C. Keep seedlings at this temperature until the plants are 5cm to 6cm high; thereafter the temperature can be lowered to between 12°C and 14°C.