Gladiolus Ruby - Sword Lily

This gladiolus or Gladiolus papilio 'Ruby', hardy in well-drained soil and adorned with charming ruby red flowers speckled with garnet, invites us to take another look at these plants. It is a rare and early form of the beautiful butterfly gladiolus, whose remarkably colourful flowers are also more tightly packed on the spike and slightly larger than those of the typical variety. It blooms from June-July until September-October in sunny borders and quickly multiplies to form stunning clumps, from which emerge elegant, thin yet sturdy stems, divinely flowered.

The genus Gladiolus belongs to the iris family, the cultivated varieties are hybrids divided into 3 major groups: Grandiflorus (large-flowered), Primulinus (early-flowering), and Nanus (butterflies). 'Ruby' belongs to the Nanus group, characterized by rather small and often speckled flowers, irregularly arranged on stems 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.

'Ruby' is a recent cultivar, derived among others from 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 roots. Its foliage consists of thin, relatively short sword-shaped leaves, grey-green in colour, arranged in a fan shape and forming a 60 cm (24in) tall clump. The leaves are topped by a spike inflorescence with up to 7 buds, whose hooded flowers resemble those of certain orchids or even cannas, and are carried on very slender stems. Here they are a ruby red colour, with a purple throat, and turn a purplish shade before fading. The storage organ is a corm, which is a swollen stem with scales. Each corm will produce 2 or 3 flower spikes.

The Gladiolus papilio 'Ruby' has a great chance of changing the perspective of detractors of this plant, often considered stiff and lacking elegance to the point that it is relegated to the vegetable garden for cut flowers. Gladioli and their long colourful spikes are symbolic of the 70s and somewhat formal flower arrangements. While they are irreplaceable in bouquets, in gardens, their silhouette needs the company of plants with lush foliage that will showcase their blooming. Plant 'Ruby' in borders with grasses, forget-me-nots, and perennial flax, for example. Play with white for elegance and add here and there some silver foliage. Gladioli are regulars in cottage gardens, where they accompany vegetables all the way to the vegetable patch. 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-shaped leaves, derived from the Latin word  gladius. Its wild forms were often represented in jewelry or on tapestries and fabrics made by the Semitic people before the Christian era.