FREESIA

genus of about 20 species of South African plants of the iris family (Iridaceae), with bulblike structures (corms), grassy foliage, and wiry spikes of bell-like, lemon-scented flowers in white, yellow, orange, and blue. The approximately 60-centimetre- (2-foot-) tall flower spikes usually turn at right angles from the stem, displaying the flowers in a horizontal line. Two species much used in hybridization are F. refracta, greenish yellow to yellow or white, and F. armstrongii, tinged rose-purple. The plants are grown indoors in pots or in gardens in mild climates.