Common name: Drooping Orchid
Epipogium roseum (D.Don) Lindl. APNI* 
Description: Terrestrial herb with rhizome horizontal, tuberous, unbranched.
Inflorescence 5–60 cm long, 4–19-flowered, pale yellow, nodding at apex in bud but becoming erect as the flowers open, with few to numerous, sheathing scales.
Flowers not opening widely, dull white to pale yellow or pink. Pedicel 3–5 mm long. Ovary 5–8 mm long, conspicuously swollen. Sepals 7–12 mm long, 1–1.5 mm wide. Labellum slightly longer than sepals; lamina concave, decurved at the apex, dotted with dull red spots, with papillose and crenulate margins; spur 2–4 mm long, cylindrical, obtuse. Anther larger than the column.
Flowering: December–March
Distribution and occurrence: Grows in grassland to rainforest, usually in accumulations of rotting vegetation, on the coast and coastal ranges north of the Macleay R.
NSW subdivisions: NC
Other Australian states: Qld
The flowering cycle is very short with seed dispersal completed only a few days.after the inflorescence has emerged from the ground.
Text by P. H. Weston
Taxon concept: Flora of NSW 4 (1993)
APNI* Provides a link to the Australian Plant Name Index (hosted by the Australian National Botanic Gardens) for comprehensive bibliographic data
***The AVH map option provides a detailed interactive Australia wide distribution map drawn from collections held by all major Australian herbaria participating in the Australian Virtual Herbarium project.
|
