Crinum paludosum

Crinum paludosum is commonly known as the pan crinum, the vlei lily, the bushveld vlei lily, in Afrikaans the Sandhof lelie (Sandhof lily) and previously scientifically C. forbesii. The plant is a deciduous, bulbous perennial that grows in summer, reaching heights from 20 cm to 55 cm.

The ovoid bulb is from 5 cm to 15 cm in diameter with a narrow neck elongation of between 10 cm and 20 cm. The bulb is covered in several layers of light brown, cartilaginous tunic.

In South Africa the species distribution is in KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, Limpopo and North West. The distribution ranges further in southern Africa, at least in Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. It is, however, in Namibia where the plant has become a famous tourist attraction. At Sandhof, a farm near Maltahöhe, huge stands of these lilies deliver spectacular viewing experiences in most years. The plants often present mass flowering here, sometimes immersed in shallow water, up to about 30 cm deep. This photo was taken on the Sandhof Farm, but on dry land.

The habitat is seasonal pans and marshy areas. The specific name, paludosum, is a Latin word meaning marshy, referring to this habitat. The habitat population is deemed of least concern early in the twenty first century (Duncan, et al, 2016; Pooley, 1998; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).