Glumicalyx flanaganii

Glumicalyx flanaganii, commonly known as Flanagan’s gooseneck flower and previously scientifically as Zaluzianskya flanaganii, is a perennial herb growing from 15 cm to 60 cm in height and spreading. This is the largest of the six Glumicalyx species. The stems are covered in downward facing hairs. The sparsely hairy leaves are elliptic to oblong with toothed margins.

G. flanaganii is found at high altitude in the Drakensberg and especially the Maluti Mountains. This is more a flower of Lesotho than of South Africa, as it just “overflows” slightly into each of the three provinces that surround Lesotho (KwaZulu-Natal, Free State and the Eastern Cape).

The habitat is damp spots and watercourses in montane grassland. The habitat population is deemed of least concern early in the twenty first century (Manning, 2009; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).