Lachenalia canaliculata many stubby flowers

The full inflorescence of Lachenalia canaliculata shows colour variations between top and bottom of the spike typical of this species.

L. mutabilis is another lachenalia that produces such colour changes up its inflorescence, but it has short leaves with crinkly margins. There are also lachenalias bearing stalked flowers, even long-stalked ones, while this species has stalkless flowers, the single-stalk inflorescence bearing sessile flowers referred to as a spike rather than a raceme.

L. canaliculata flowers grow in three-flowered whorls up the densely flowered stem. Flowering happens from late winter to after midspring. The photo was taken in August (Leistner, (Ed.), 2000; iNaturalist; www.pacificbulbsociety.org).