Lapeirousia oreogena

Lapeirousia oreogena, commonly known as the cushion cabong and in Afrikaans the perskussing (purple cushion), is a cormous, stemless perennial reaching heights around 10 cm. The tufted leaves are lanceolate and ribbed.

The flowers grow in a spiralling spike upon slender, undulating, green bracts. The flower is star-shaped on a long tube. The six spreading tepals are blue purple, black at the base with white or cream arrowhead markings pointing inward. Flower diameter is up to 2 cm.

The three stamens are erect, together in the centre, the anthers coloured as the tepals. The style has three branches.

Flowering happens late in winter and early in spring.

The species distribution is small in the Northern Cape near Nieuwoudtville, the Bokkeveld Plateau and towards Calvinia.

The habitat is renosterveld on clay flats. The species is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century (Manning and Goldblatt, 1997; Bond and Goldblatt, 1984; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).