Gladiolus venustus when corms multiply

That Gladiolus venustus may form clumps from multiplying corms is confirmed in the photo. The clump size here is quite special though: abundance added over years. Many G. venustus plants are seen with much less clumping than here.

Gladiolus corms generally can offset many tiny cormels around a main one in a season. The cormels contribute to plant survival in times of drought, cormels being more drought tolerant than seed, although slow. The photo was taken in the Northern Cape where the species distribution range reaches the Bokkeveld Plateau. The rainfall isn’t high here and the summers dry.

Vegetative reproduction as per cormels is good where populations are stable but may reduce the genetic diversity gained when plants are grown from seed. More flowers from bigger clumps will, however, again attract more pollinators and usually result in more seed. Species survival benefits from more options, including the backup plans and shortcuts; beautiful when a plan comes together (Manning, 2007; Goldblatt and Manning, 1998; iNaturalist; https://www.ajol.info).