Watsonia aletroides floral bracts

The multicoloured, yet comparatively inconspicuous bracts of Watsonia aletroides flowers form a zigzag pattern up the spike of this inflorescence. This is caused by the two opposite columns in which the flowers succeed each other up the inflorescence: each bract-tip peaking below its particular flower.

The upper part of the bract is dry and papery. The live part below is in this case turning purple, maybe from strain of its life struggle. There is a small green, bract-like stem leaf below the inflorescence.

Initially the flower buds point up next to the stalk, soon to begin sagging and nodding as they approach mature length. The outer tepals of the lengthening buds are still closed in an acutely pointed cone tip, before the white of the inner tepals begins to show.

Some of these plants have white on all their tepals, others not at all (Mustart, et al, 1997; Manning, 2007; Bond and Goldblatt, 1984).