Plant in morning sun to shade with only occasional irrigation. Has proven hardy to at least 25° F in the understory within our garden. Can be used in mass or as an individual specimen. Treat for snails as they can mar the otherwise attractive foliage.

Dietes butcheriana can be found growing naturally in the deep shade of the mist-belt forest areas of Natal in South Africa. The name for the genus is from the Greek words 'di' meaning "twice" or "dual" and 'etes' meaning "affinities" because of this plant's close relationship to the genus Moraea and the Iris of the Northern Hemisphere. The Dietes were once included with the Moraea, which grow from a corm, but were split off into their own genus because they are rhizomatous plants. Although this genus was described in the 19th century, these plants are often still mistakenly called Moraea. The specific epithet honors Harry James Butcher (1866–1950), a merchant from Durban, who gardened with South African plants and discovered this species.

Our plants of this species were first grown from seed provided to us by the South African National Botanic Garden Kirstenbosch in 1999 and later crops were grown from seed collected from these stock plants. We sold it at our nursery from 2001 until 2015. 

The information displayed on this page about Dietes butcheriana is based on the research we have conducted about it in our nursery library as well as from information provided by reliable online resources. We also include our own observations made about this plant as it grows in the nursery gardens and other gardens visited, as well how the crops of this plant have performed in the containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we have received from others and welcome hearing from anyone with information about this plant, particularly if it includes cultural information that will aid others to better grow it.