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Iridaceae
Purple Flag
Patersonia occidentalis
Fleeting beauty.
- Family
- Iridaceae
- Genus
- Patersonia
- Native to
- Australia, Western Australia, South Australia
- Bloom season
- Spring, Summer
- Type
- perennial herb
- Height
- 1-2 ft
- Sunlight
- full sun to part shade
- Soil
- sandy, well-drained
- Water
- low to moderate
- Hardiness
- 9-11
- Lifespan
- perennial
Did you know
- Each Patersonia flower lasts only a single morning before closing, but new buds open daily in succession.
- The genus contains about 20 species, all endemic to Australia except a few found in New Guinea and Borneo.
- Patersonia is the only Australian genus in the iris family (Iridaceae) apart from the introduced gladiolus.
- The flowers emerge from papery spathes in clusters at the top of slender stems, giving a delicate appearance.
- The genus is named after Colonel William Paterson, an 18th-century Scottish botanist and lieutenant-governor of New South Wales.
Color meanings
0
fleeting beauty
1
independence
2
delicacy