General Information

COMMON NAMES: White Apostle Iris, White Marica, Apostle Plant GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE Mexico - Brazil COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent, Not naturalised; Land, lowlands, gardens SIGNIFICANCE LIST: Ornamental flowers KEY FEATURES: Lily to 60cm with long arching 'leaves' and erect blue and white flowers. 'LEAVES' basal, long-tapering, to 100x3cm, green. FLOWERS on short stalks from a fold on a 'leaf'; each short-lived, to 6cmØ, stigma 3-pronged; outer petals 3 spreading (=tepals) white; inner petals 3, rolled-back, dark blue and white; petal bases yellow with brown markings. SIMILAR SPECIES: Apostle Plant (Neomarica northiana) - possibly present) has larger flowers 7cmØ (vs 5cm), and stigma with 2 prongs (vs 3).

Cook Islands Distribution

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Southern Group: Present    Makatea:
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
	-	+						-

Northern Group:
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
-			-

Neomarica gracilis (Herb.)
SYNONYMS: Marica gracilis

TAXONOMY: PLANTAE; ANTHOPHYTA (=Angiospermae); LILIOPSIDA (=Monocotyledones); LILIIDAE; Liliales; IRIDACEAE

IDENTIFICATION: Lily to 60cm with arching 'leaves'. 'LEAVES' (=flower-stalk plus terminal leaf) sword-like, erect or reclining, to 100x3cm. FLOWERS on short stems arising from 'leaf'; short-lived, to 6cmØ, stigma 3-pronged; PETALS outer 3, oval, tips acute, white; inner 3, recurved, deep blue and white; all bases variegated.

Vouchers:
Atiu: fieldsight+photo, Atiu Motel, 11/2000, putative ID GMcC

References:
p.236 Neal - In Gardens of Hawaii
p.760 Hortus 3rd
p.777 Royal Hort. Soc. Index of Garden Plants
p.526 Tropica

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM03a, zD02

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