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A Project Gutenberg of Australia eBook Title: West Australian Orchids Author: Emily H Pelloe eBook No.: 0400681h.html Edition: 1 Language: English Character set encoding: HTML--Latin-1(ISO-8859-1)--8 bit Date first posted: September 2004 Date most recently updated: September 2004 Project Gutenberg of Australia eBooks are created from printed editions which are in the public domain in Australia, unless a copyright notice is included. We do NOT keep any eBooks in compliance with a particular paper edition. Copyright laws are changing all over the world. Be sure to check the copyright laws for your country before downloading or redistributing this file. This eBook is made available at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg of Australia License which may be viewed online at http://gutenberg.net.au/licence.html To contact Project Gutenberg of Australia go to http://gutenberg.net.au
by
EMILY H. PELLOE
Author of
"WILDFLOWERS OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA"
Do they say that the bush is all greyness and
gloom
Why, the rainbow has lent every thread from his loom
To weave into flower and shrub!
There are star-flowers blue as the deep winter
sky,
Here are "Grandmothers Honeycups," humble and shy;
And the purple of hovea bloom.
Half hiding, half peeping, the orchids
appear,
The friendly and cheerful red runner creeps near--
Say, where are the greyness and gloom.
--LILIAN WOOSTER GREAVES.
[ILLUSTRATIONS BY THE AUTHOR]
PUBLISHED BY
EMILY H. PELLOE
PERTH
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
1930
My thanks are due to
DR. R. S. ROGERS
and
LT.-COL. B. T. GOADBY
for generously given assistance in collecting
material for the compilation of this Book.
PERTH, W.A., 1930.
EMILY H. PELLOE.
Registered by the Postmaster-General for
transmission
through the Post as an Australian Book.
Wholly Set up and Printed in
Australia by
DIX LIMITED
Murray St. Perth.
Three-colour Blocks by
GIBNEY & SONS LTD.
Perth.
To
SIR FRANCIS NEWDEGATE, K.C.M.G.,
LATE GOVERNOR OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA,
AND LOVER OF ITS FLORA.
ILLUSTRATIONS:
CALADENIA CAIRNSIANA Plate I.
CALADENIA CRISTATA Plate I.
CALADENIA DEFORMIS Plate I.
CALADENIA DILATATA Plate I.
CALADENIA DISCOIDEA Plate I.
CALADENIA FILAMENTOSA Plate I.
CALADENIA FLAVA Plate I.
CALADENIA GEMMATA Plate I.
CALADENIA HIRTA Plate I.
CALADENIA LATIFOLIA Plate I.
CALADENIA LOBATA Plate I.
CALADENIA MACROSTYLIS Page 51.
CALADENIA MENZIESII Plate III.
CALADENIA MULTICLAVIA Page 44.
CALADENIA PANICULATA Page 55.
CALADENIA PATERSONII VAR. LONGICAUDA Plate
I.
CALADENIA PECTINATA Plate I.
CALADENIA PLICATA Plate I.
CALADENIA ROEI Page 53.
CALADENIA SACCHARATA Plate I.
CALADENIA SERICEA Plate I.
DIURIS CARINATA Plate III.
DIURIS LONGIFOLIA Plate III.
DIURIS SETACEA Page 16.
DRAKAEA ELASTICA Plate III.
DRAKAEA JEANENSIS Page 31.
ERIOCHILUS SCABER Plate III.
GLSSODIA BRUNONIS Plate III.
GLSSODIA EMARGINATA Plate III.
LEPTOCERAS FIMBRIATUM Plate III.
LYPERANTHUS NIGRICANS Plate III.
LYPERANTHUS SERRATUS Plate III.
MICROTIS PORRIFOLIA Plate II.
PRASOPHYLLUM CYPHOCHILUM Page 25.
PRASOPHYLLUM ELATUM Plate II.
PRASOPHYLLUM FIMBRIA Plate II.
PRASOPHYLLUM MACROSTACHYUM Page 26.
PRASOPHYLLUM PARVIFOLIUM Page 27.
PTEROSTYLIS RECURVA Plate III.
PTEROSTYLIS ROBUSTA Plate III.
PTEROSTYLIS ROGERSII Page 34.
PTEROSTYLIS SARGENTII Page 36.
PTEROSTYLIS TURFOSA Plate III.
PTEROSTYLIS VITTATA Plate III.
RHIZANTHELLA GARDNERI Page 65.
THELYMITRA ANTENNIFERA Plate II.
THELYMITRA ARISTATA Plate II.
THELYMITRA CRINITA Plate II.
THELYMITRA FUSCOLUTEA Plate II.
THELYMITRA VARIEGATA Plate II.
THELYMITRA VILLOSA Plate II.
Plate I.
West Australian Orchids
Orchids are usually termed the aristocrats of plant life. The presence of over 130 species in Western Australia adds considerable interest to the study of her magnificent and world-famous flora.
The order or family Orchidaceae was originally defined by Haller in the 18th Century, its name being adapted from the root of Orchis, a well-known genus in the temperate regions of the Northern hemisphere. It belongs to the group of plants known as monocotyledons, which have seeds generating in a single lobe, and with few exceptions, parallel-veined leaves. The Orchidaceae family is a very large one, represented in the world by over 400 genera and many thousands of species, especially abundant in the Tropics, and rare in the Arctic regions.
West Australian orchids, which are practically all terrestrial, cannot be compared to some found in Brazil, the Malay States, India, and other tropical places, for size, vividness of colour, and bizarre marking. But their delicate tints, dainty fragility of form, the curious structure of many of the species, and their methods of fertilisation, constitute beauty that endears them to young and old, and characteristics that fascinate the botanist.
A tropical South American orchid (Coryanthes, Hooker, four species) has the honour of being considered the most wonderful flower in the world, It is an epiphyte (which means that it grows attached to the trunk or branches of a tree without being parasitical, or on a rock-face, but never in the ground) and has pendulous flowers marvellously constructed for the purpose of ensuring fertilisation by insects. Below a part composed of succulent tissue very attractive to bees, is a bucket-like organ kept full of a thin watery fluid that drips into it. The bees fight for places to secure the succulent tissue, and every now and then one falls, or gets pushed off, into the bucket. It can neither fly nor climb out and is forced to squeeze through a sort of narrow' overflow pipe. In so doing it passes the stigma, fertilising it, if any pollen is borne, and then, passing the anther, is loaded with a fresh supp1y of pollen to be carried to other flowers.
Stanhopea, Frost, another tropical American epiphyte also has flowers of wonderful construction and large size, some being eight inches in diameter. In one species (S. tigrina, Bateman) a certain part, the only escape from a bucket trap covered with juicy hairs is so slippery that fertilisation is effected by bees sliding down it on to the column. These and other magnificent tropical orchids grown under cultivation in Europe, are illustrated in colour in a French book entitled "Les Orchidees," by E. de Puydt.
Pteroslylis, an Australian genus well represented in Western Australia, was specially mentioned by Darwin on account of the curious construction of its flowers and interesting methods of fertilisation, in his book, "The Fertilisation of Orchids."
NAMING AND CLASSIFICATION
Orchids, like all other classified plants, have two names. The first, usually of Greek derivation, denotes the genus to which it belongs, and the second, generally a Latin word, the species. In some cases personal names commemorating distinguished botanists and others have been used, but the names, when translated, usually indicate some characteristic of genus or the species. "Why not simple English names?" is a question often asked that can be best explained, perhaps, by mentioning the fact that science knows no nationality. A great deal of West Australian botanical collection, research classification, has been done by foreign enthusiasts. It is a good thing the custom exists of using a common dead language such as Greek or Latin, for purposes of scientific nomenclature. Otherwise, we should indeed have been saddled with some puzzles in connection with the naming of our native flowers.
The name written immediately after an orchid or other classified flower, is that of the botanist who originally named it. It will be noticed that the majority of West Australian orchids owe their titles to Robert Brown, the "grand old man of Australian botany. Originally an army surgeon, he was appointed by Sir Joseph Banks to accompany Flinders, as naturalist, on his voyage of discovery to Australia in "Investigator." Robert Brown was subsequently Keeper Botany at the British Museum, and is honoured as the greatest systematic botanist of all time. Several genera and many species of orchids were named by Professor John Lindley, a celebrated English botanist, many years a deeply interested, worker on Australian plants.
Other famous botanists responsible for the naming of numerous species were George Bentham, author of "Flora Australiensis," a comprehensive work on Australian plants; Baron Ferdinand von Mueller, botanical explorer and writer, for many years Government Botanist of Victoria; and R. D. Fitzgerald, who wrote and illustrated in colour a priceless work on Australian orchids. Mr. Fitzgerald died, unfortunately, before his task was finished. A large number of his unpublished drawings are stored at the Mitchell Library, Sydney, New South Wales. Apart from the beautiful full-page plates, lucid descriptions and field notes of the varieties dealt with in the two volumes of "Fitzgerald's Australian Orchids," fascinating facts and theories concerning their fertilisation are included.
Dr. R. S. Rogers, of Adelaide, South Australia, is the present-day authority on Australian orchids. Besides describing many new West Australian species, Dr. Rogers has contributed much valuable information, based on personal knowledge of the living plants, through the medium of various botanical publications, dealing with other West Australian orchids, both well-known and rarely collected.
Mrs. Edith Coleman, of Blackburn, Victoria, has made special study of West Australian orchids, and enjoys the honour of being the only woman to describe and name new orchid species in Western Australia. Mrs. Coleman has contributed valuable addition to the known facts concerning the pollination of various species. Mr. O. H. Sargent, of Perth, also has specialised in orchid observation, and defined and named many species.
The common names by which many orchids are known are extremely interesting, but by no means satisfactory for identification purposes. The same name is often applied to several species, and in various places the same orchid is known by different names, which is confusing. The correct botanical names of most West Australian orchids are euphonious, and not too difficult for even children to learn. Once the meanings are understood and the described characteristics have been observed in the growing plants, the terrors of the names vanish, and their usage becomes a matter of course.
The following rules have been laid down for the correct spelling of botanical names: Generic names should always begin with a capital letter. A capital letter should be used for the name of a species derived from the name of a person. The termination "ii" is used with personal names (masculine) after all consonants except "r," e.g., Menziesii, Muelleri; but not after vowels, e.g., Purdiei. The gender of an adjective species should agree with that of the generic name.
No absolutely authoritative ruling can be quoted for the proper pronunciation of the generic names of the various orchids, and it is surprising how many different ways some of them can be, and are pronounced. In hope of something definite in this respect being adopted by West Australia orchid-lovers, the pronunciations commonly used by botanist are indicated in this book.
Classification of West Australian orchids, so far as genus is concerned, is not usually difficult. With a little practice correct identification of the different species becomes easy if a book of reference is available, although examination of specimens under a lens is sometimes necessary. Pictures and detailed drawings are helpful, but to "run out," as botanist term working from detailed descriptions, is the most unsatisfactory way of arriving definitely at right identification. With the aid of this book it should not be beyond the power of any person or child of reasonable age, sufficiently interested, to learn to run out both genus and species of any West Australian orchid for themselves. The use of difficult technical terms has been avoided as much as possible. A glossary, however, is appended which explains the meaning of certain word considered necessary for concise and clear description. Idea can be obtained from the illustrations as to the genus of a specimen. If that genus be turned up and the general description found to agree, the details of the various species can be glanced through until one is discovered that corresponds in shape and colour, size of leaf, parts of flower, etc. To cormpare the descriptions of well-known varieties with living specimens is good practice for learning to deal with orchids not so well known.
STRUCTURE, FERTILISATION and REPRODUCTION
The chief characteristic of an orchid flower is the column, composed of the united male and female generative organs, stamens and pistil, and bearing upon it a small button-like projection known as the rostellum, covered, like the stigma, with a sticky glue like substance attractive to insects.
Orchids are fertilised by pollen-grains falling from the anther on to the stigma, or being deposited upon it by pollen bearing insects visiting the flower. Should the rostellum be touched by an insect (or even for purposes of experiment with a pin) the pollen masses are released from the anther at the top of the column. The column often bears wing-like, semi-transparent appendages that assist in the direction of insects to the rostellum.
At the base of the column is the ovary or seed capsule. The perianth consists of three sepals, forming the outer row, and three petals alternate with them, forming the inner row, all adherent to the ovary. The sepals are usually darker outside than the petals. A distinctive feature of an orchid flower is that the third petal or labellum (commonly called the lip) is usually unlike the others, and of strange and unexpected shape. In many cases the lip has a part to play in assisting fertilisation by insects. Its appearance attracts them. The rows of calli or glandular hairs upon it in some species, guide crawling insects to the base of the column. When the lip is fringed, insects often get entangled, and their struggles for freedom generally result in pollen being deposited upon the stigma. In some instances the lip springs forward at the lightest touch, being provided with a hinge-like contrivance, so that insects alighting on the lip are forced against the column and held there.
Some orchids, owing to the arrangement of the generative parts, are capable of self-pollination, but, the majority are dependent upon insects for fertilisation, the pollen usually being carried from other flowers. Those species that are selffertilised always produce a far greater proportion of seed.
The seed-capsule of an orchid is three-celled, each cell containing a great number of tiny seeds. The quantity produced is counterbalanced by the fact that the seeds do not germinate freely, and the enormous number of flowers on varieties dependent on insects for reproduction, that bloom and wither without being fertilised.
Although orchids seed freely when fertilised, the reproduction of terrestrial species is largely carried on by multiplication of the root tubers, and for this reason an orchid plant should never be torn heedlessly from the ground. If the flower is carefully picked from above, or even just below the lower leaf or leaves, no damage is done and it will grow up again.
COLLECTION OF ORCHIDS
The study of orchids should appeal to any lover of Nature's beauty and wonders, and is one to be encouraged. Orchid-hunting is a delightful pastime entailing much healthful walking exercise, and adding unending charm to bush excursions. The interest of the beginner who has acquired some knowledge of species and habits, rapidly becomes the enthusiasm of the keen collector. And there is no doubt that the pursuit of Nature-study once cultivated by those lucky bush-dwellers with opportunity at their door-step, does much to relieve the monotony of country life.
"Live and let live," however, should be the motto of those orchid-seekers who strive to pick every flower on sight-a practice that can have but one result, the gradual but sure extermination of even the commonest kinds. Most children, and grown-ups also, have much to learn in this respect. Just a few carefully selected specimens in a loose bunch are ever so much more effective than hundreds of blooms tightly packed into a great mass than can scarcely be held in the hand. Orchids picked in this wholesale fashion usually are thrown away almost as soon as gathered or upon reaching home, because of their pitiable crushed and wilted condition, or the impossibility of using such quantities for decorative purpose in any one house. Quality and- variety, not quantity, should be the aim of the orchid-hunter, also the opportunity of noting the characteristics of different species.
Children love orchids. They see quaint resemblances to something or other in almost every familiar variety. Perhaps because West Australian orchids mostly are plants of lowly stature, and the eyes of children are nearer the ground than those of grown-ups, boys and girls usually have what is known as "the orchid eye" exceedingly well developed, and are wonderfully quick at noticing species often unobserved by the casual passer-by.
A carefully prepared and properly classified orchid collection is of great interest. The specimens should be pressed by placing them carefully between sheets of blotting-paper as flat as possible and applying pressure with a hot iron. They should then be neatly mounted on a piece of stout white paper - not stuck on, but held in position by several narrow strips of adhesive paper - and labelled with the correct botanical name, colour, the common name or names by which known, locality where found, and the date. The various species should be grouped together under the headings of their respective genera, and the whole collection kept either in folders made of thick paper, or mounted on heavy paper and the sheets bound together by fine cord run through punched holes on the loose-leaf system, so that fresh specimens may be put away in their proper places as collected.
Systematic botanists are often compelled to rely solely upon dried specimens of plants from different lands for purposes of study and description. Bentham's monumental work, "Flora Australiensis" affords a striking example from a classification point of view of what can be attained without personal knowledge of the flora of a country in its natural state. But no one interested, and fortunate enough to live within reach of the living and growing plants, should be content with such acquaintance with orchids. The observation of the growth and development of the various species from week to week, and year to year, is a fascinating hobby, Notes carefully kept with comparisons of various individual plants of the same variety growing under different conditions may yield valuable unrecorded information. It is in this way, for in stance, that one becomes acquainted with the great change in the whole form of the plant which such a common orchid a Pterosty1is vittata undergoes during the first three year of its growth. Many of the orchids in Western Australia such as this one which grows readily from seed, are easily cultivated in boxes or pots and under such conditions can be studied at frequent intervals without difficulty. (See Lyperanthus Forrestii and Cryptostylis ovata.)
WEST AUSTRALIAN TYPES
West Australian orchids, excepting those of the northern tropical area, are all terrestrial; that is, they growr in the ground. In the northern regions of Western Australia epiphytical and other tropical orchids have been found. Specimens in the Government herbariums from the Kimberley district, include Eulophia venosa, Reichenbach fil; Cymbidium canaliculatum, R. Brown; and Dendrobium dicuphum, F. von Mueller. The humid atmosphere of the tropical area of Western Australia is more favourable to the growth, of epiphytes than the temperate regions of the southern portion of the State, where in the summer the rainfall is slight, and the moisture necessary for tree orchids dries out of the bark surrounding the trunks of forest trees. With the exception of one species of Gastrodia and perhaps the recently discovered Rhizanthella, all West Australian orchids belong to the tribe Neottieae, in which the anther is erect or bent forward and persistent. Species of genera (including Gastrodia) belonging to the Arethuseae tribe have the anther lid-like, incumbent, and usually deciduous.
LOCALITIES, ETC.
In the following pages descriptions will be found of the terrestrial orchids native to Western Australia. Localities, with month of flowering, have in almost every instance, been appended to each detailed description. But attempt has not been made to define exactly either the range, situation or flowering period of the various species, as most of them widely distributed and indifferent, apparently, to any particular class of soil. The places and times given, however, serve as a guide for the collection of specially desired species The majority of West Australian orchids thrive equally in forest glades, river beds or swampy places, in the vicinity of flooded flats, sandy soil or on granite mountain range or coastal limestone hills. Flowering times vary according situation, sometimes extending over several months.
Many orchids may be found upon the slopes of, or on flats adjacent to the Darling Range. Some varieties are fairly plentiful in and around Perth and suburbs on vacant virgin land, and in the vicinity of the upper reaches of Swan and Canning rivers.
Thelymitra, R. & C.
Forster
[thel-ee-my-tra ]
From thelys, a woman, and mitra, a cap; referring to the hooded column which bears a fanciful resemblance to a woman's headdress.
Some of the most showy and beautiful of West Australian orchids belong to this genus, represented by many species, commonly called "Sun Orchids," with variously coloured flowers, often sweetly scented, in a terminal raceme. The flowers, unlike the usual orchid type, have, sepals and petals nearly equal in length, with the lip similar to and spreading with them. This striking characteristic occurs among Australian orchids only in this genus. Many interesting experiments and observations were made and recorded by R. D. Fitzgerald in regard to the fertilisation of the various species of Thelymitra (some of which are capable of self-fertilisation while others are wholly dependent on insects) by artificial pollination with the aid of a pin, and the use of a bell-glass placed over a plant in the early stages of its development, thus precluding the possibility of insect fertilisation, and proving in many cases, the presence of the power of self-fertilisation. Various species produced seed when crossed artificially among themselves, and with the various forms of Diuris. The column is erect, rather short, and very broadly winged. Where the anther rises above the stigma, and the pollen masses crumble readily and fall on the stigma, the flower is usually capable of self-fertilisation. Some species fertilise themselves in the bud, the flower afterwards expanding. Where the pollen masses are not easily broken and come away readily at a touch, but whole, from behind or below the stigma, insects are necessary for fertilisation. The various species have a solitary leaf, usually with a long sheath.
The genus Thelymitra is principally Australian, but extends to New Zealand, New Caledonia and Java.
T. ixioides, Swartz; flowers like Ixia.
Usually above 1 ft., with several reddish-purple flowers, darkly
veined. Middle lobe of hood crested at the top. "A type of the
species in which the pollen masses are not friable but come away
whole from behind the stigma, or the pollen in any way overlap it,
or be overlapped by it, or crumble upon it." - Fitzgerald.
W.A.: Bibra Lakes, Busselton, Gilgerring, Lake Yangebup,
Maylands, Pinjara. September - October.
All other States.
T. canalicialata, R. Brown; channeled.
A species with habit and few, rather small flowers resembling the
slender, narrow-leaved forms of T. ixioides, but the central
lobe of column-hood is broader and though much more toothed, has no
dorsal crest. Flowers bright blue with dark blue longitudinal
lines; points of lateral wings of column produced forward into a
bunch of light pink hairs, middle lobe toothed. Leaf, long, linear,
deeply channeled. Usually favours clay soil.
W.A.: Albany, Bruce Rock, Dumbleyung, York. October -
November.
Victoria, New South Wales.
T. campanulata, Lindley; bell-shaped.
A species considered distinct by some botanists, but not by
Bentham, who could not separate it from T. canaliculalata.
As originally described, the leaf is radical and linear. Flowers
numerous, reddish-purple, bell-shaped. Column-hood with wide
appendages and sharp-pointed apex barbed at middle, softly hairy at
the back.
W.A.: Mt. Toolbrunup. October.
T. crinita, Lindley; hairy, referring to the tufted crest
of column.
Usually above 1 ft. high. Leaf very broadly lanceolate. Flowers,
several in a loose raceme, of a beautiful shade of blue. Easily
distinguished from other species by the hood of the column being
densely crested. The wings enclose the column on three sides and
terminate above in a dense tuft of purple hairs projecting forward.
"Evidently fertilised by insects from the readiness with which
pollen masses are removed from the anther, and their unbroken
condition when extracted." - Fitzgerald. Favours ironstone
hills.
W.A.: Albany, Bruce Rock, Dumbleyung, Gosnells, Jarnadup, Jarrahdale, Kalamunda, Narrogin, Stirling Range, Swan View, Warren River, Weld River, Yallingup. September - December
T. fasciculata, Fitzgerald; arranged in a bundle.
A species somewhat resembling T. canaliculata and T.
ixioides. Leaf linear, 1/4 in. to 3/4 in. long. Flowers
lilac-blue, about five in a raceme. Column with pointed lobes or
appendages and having no lobes or crest between them, but top of
column covered by a mass of glands like a bundle of twigs.
W.A.: Albany, Busselton, Swan View. September - October.
T. aristata, Lindley; bearded, referring to the
hair-tufts.
A tall robust plant. Leaf broad, about 7 in. long. Flowers several,
pale mauve; hood of column smooth at back, middle lobe dilated, its
crest level with the white hair-tufts.
W.A.: Maylands., Stirling Range, Swan View. September -
October.
New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria.
T. longifolia, Forster; long leaf.
Usually slender with a long narrow leaf. Flowers light purple.
Middle lobe of column hood scarcely notched and entire, smooth,
dark yellow and tubular in form. Points of lateral lobes of column
densely fringed with white hairs. The several flowers, every one of
which produces seed, are self-fertilised before opening, and only
open about noon for a little while on calm sunny days.
W.A.: Darlington, Dumbleyung, Highbury, Jarnadup, Kalamunda,
Katanniug, Narrogin, Swan View, Wagin, York, September -
November.
All other State.
T. nuda, R. Brown; naked.
An intermediate species between the forms of Thelymitra that
are independent, and those that are dependent upon insects for
fertilisation. Stem about 18 in. Leaf about 7 in long. Flowers,
pale mauve, as many as 12 or 13 in a spike Not considered distinct
from T. longifolia by Bentham.
W.A.: Albany. September.
New South Wale.
T. pauciflora, R. Brown; few-flowered.
A single-flowered (blue) variety, somewhat resembling T.
longifolia, but having the hood of column deeply divided. Not
considered distinct by Bentham.
W.A.: Albany. September.
New South Wale, Victoria.
T. mucida, Fitzgerald; mouldy.
A slender species, scarcely 1 ft. high. Leaf linear, about 6in.
long, thick but slightly channeled. Flowers, two or three, blue;
petals and sepals about 1/4 in. long. Column shorter and of a
squarer form than in other species, hooded, the hood deeply and
acutely emarginate with entire edges, very dark, but covered with a
heavy bloom resembling mildew, which rubs off. Extreme lateral
appendages produced horizontally, covered on the outside with
yellow cilia, smooth on the inside.
This orchid was found by Fitzgerald at Wilson's Inlet in
September, on a plain in standing water in company with Microtis
atrata, and he considered it a self-fertilising species.
W.A.: Wilsons Inlet. September.
T. villosa, Lindley; hairy.
"CUSTARD ORCHID"
A rather stout species, usually above 1 ft. high, remarkable for
its ovate leaf, hairy on both sides as well as the sheath, the rest
of the plant being glabrous. Hairs on leaf run in longitudinal
lines parallel to the margins. Flowers, large, yellow dotted with
purple, in a loose raceme; middle lobe of the hood undivided,
crested at the end, and a transverse crest inside the base. Lateral
lobes of column densely fringed with orange-yellow hairs projecting
forward.
W.A.: Busselton, Darlington, Gosnells, Harvey, Highbury,
Kalamunda, Stirling Range, Swan View. September - October.
T. tigrina, R. Brown; tiger like markings.
A slender plant. Leaf very narrow, glabrous and channeled. Flowers,
small, yellow, spotted. Sepals and petals under in. long. Middle
lobe of hood divided three times, without internal crest.
W.A.: Albany, Dalwallinu. November.
T. Sargentii; Rogers; honouring O. H. Sargent, of Perth,
W.A.
A slender plant, up to 16 in., with a loose cylindrical sheath at
base of stem about 2 in. long. Leaf lanceolate, acuminate,
sheathing at base, reaching beyond the middle of the scape. Raceme
loosely flowered, from 4 to 5 ½ in. long. Flowers, 10 to 14,
rather large for the genus, yellow with brown dots, resembling
those of T. fuscolutea. Perianth segments spreading or
suberect. Column elongated erect, yellow, spotted, rather widely
winged, produced high above the anther, three-lobed at the apex,
middle lobe incurved, not crested on the back, deeply emarginate,
the border otherwise entire, lateral lobes ascending, densely
bearded, (Described Transactions Royal Society S.A., Vol. LIV.,
1930.)
W.A.: Bencubbin, Bruce Rock, Dalwallinu. October.
T. stellata, Lindley; star-like.
A stout species, 1 to 1 ½ ft., closely allied to T.
fuscolutea. Flowers, yellow; sepals and petals
narrow-lanceolate. Column-hooded deeply fringed with linear lobes,
with a club shaped appendage on the back. Dorsal appendage of the
hood crested at the end.
W.A.: Armadale, King's Park, Perth, Jarnadup, Warren River.
October - January.
T. fuscolutea, R. Brown; brown and
yellow-flowered.
"ORANGE ORCHID" "SPOTTED ORCHID"
A stout glabrous plant of 1 to 1½. ft. Leaf ovate or
oblong-lanceolate, 2 to 4 in. long. Flowers, very sweetly scented,
large, in a terminal raceme, yellow, spotted with brown; sepals and
petals broadly lanceolate. Dorsal appendage of the hood of column
smooth, tubercular and notched at the end.
W.A.: Albany, Darlington Dumbleyung, Gosnells, Jarnadup,
Jarrahdale, Manjimup, Stirling Range, Swan View, York.
September-December.
T. flexuosa, Endlicher; undulating.
Stems slender, under 1 ft., wiry and flexuose, bending almost at
right angles to the leaf and at each of the bracts. Flowers,
smaller than other species; one to four, yellow, suffused with red
on the outside. Sepals and petals obtuse, about ¼ in. long.
Column-wing broadly truncate, slightly sinuate, but the lobes
scarcely prominent. Usually found growing on wet flats.
W.A.: Albany, Helena Vale, Midland Junction, Mundaring,
Pindalup, Pinjarra, Ravenswood. September - October.
T. antennifer, Hooker; bearing feelers.
"CANARY ORCHID" "LEMON ORCHID" "VANILLA ORCHID"
A small plant, stems erect, wiry, 6 in. to 1 ft. high, with
narrow-linear, rather thick leaves. Flowers, one, two or three;
yellow, sepals suffused with red on the outside, delicately
scented. Lateral lobes of the column reddish-brown, oblong, erect,
spathulate. Fertilised by insects. A common species.
W.A.: Albany, Lesmurdie, Mundaring, Perth, Waroona, York. August
- October.
South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria.
T. psammophila, Andrews; sand-loving.
Stem 5 to 8 in. high, slightly flexuose. Leaf narrow-linear,
1½ to 3 in. long, empty bracts two or three, leaflike,
½ in. long. Flowers, 2 to 4, sepals and petals ovate, more
or less acuminate, to nearly ½in, long, yellow. Column-wing
continued behind, but shorter than the anther, with a broad rounded
middle-lobe and narrow triangular lateral lobes, dark reddish-brown
in colour. No red colouring on outside of sepals (Described Journal
W.A. Natural History Society, May 1905.) Favours sand
plains.
W.A.: Stirling Range, Upper Kalgan River. October.
T. carnea, R. Brown; flesh-coloured.
A slender species from 6 to 9 in. high. Leaf narrow, channeled.
Flowers, one to three, small, pink to bright red, opening only in
the sun. Column wings produced laterally into two denticulate and
more or less roughened yellow horizontal lobes not bearing hair
tufts. Intermediate lobe broad, reddish, slightly denticulate, and
rather higher.
W.A.: Rarely Collected.
T. Macmillanii, F. von Mueller; honouring Thomas
Macmillan.
A dwarf species, about 6 in. high, leaf narrow-linear, channeled,
bract-like, dark green and smooth. Stem rigid, undulate and smooth.
Flowers, two or three, salmon pink, petals and sepals spreading,
faintly veined, lip slightly shorter. Column wings produced upwards
into two tall yellow points with crested surface and margins. A
rare species.
W.A.: Highbury. October.
South Australia, Victoria.
T. variegata, Lindley; variegated.
"LEOPARD ORCHID"
Stem 1 ft. high or more. Leaf often spirally twisted about the
base of stem. Flowers 2 to 4, large, purple, spotted. Lateral lobes
of column orange-coloured, hornlike, oblong, erect, curved,
toothed. In a note accompanying his description of a new species,
Thelymitra d'Altonii, Dr. Rogers states that this Victorian
variety is "evidently a near relation of T. spiralis,
Lindi., and T. variegata, Lindi., two ill-defined and
possibly composite West Australian forms. . . . The name variegata
implies a character (presumably in the flowers) which receives no
reference in either of the original descriptions." (Transactions
Royal Society of S.A., Vol. LIV., 1930). Dr. Rogers adds that
Bentham retained only T. variegata, expressing doubt as to
the wisdom of uniting these species, a point to be settled only
after examination of a plentiful supply of material.
W.A.: Applecross., Canning Bridge, Gosnells, Northam, Perth,
Wanneroo, Warren River. August - December.
Epib1ema, R.
Brown
[ep-ee-blee-mer]
From epi, upon, and ballein, to lay or throw.
A West Australian genus resembling Thelymitra, but having a
clawed lip, limited to a single species.
E. grandiflorum, R. Brown; large-flowered.
A plant 1 to l ½ ft. high, with the habit of the slender
forms of Thelymitra ixioides, one long narrow-linear leaf
and 1 or 2 smaller erect leaves or sheathing scales. Flowers,
purplish-blue, 2 to 5, in a short raceme, sepals and petals to
¾ in. long, broadly oblong-lanceolate, veined like T.
ixioides all nearly similar. Lip on a short claw. Lateral
appendages of the column-hood oblique. Favours swampy
flats.
W.A.: Albany, Balbarrup, Bayswater, Granite Bar. November - March.
Diuris, Smith
[die-you-riss.]
From dis, double, and oura, a tail; referring to the
two lower sepals of the flowers.
An Australian genus known as "Double-tails." The best known species in Western Australia is commonly called "Donkey Orchid." Other species of the genus can easily be identified by their resemblance to it in type of flower. Typical characteristics of the genus are the narrow leaves, few at or near the base of the stem, with a few sheathing bracts higher up, the curiously shaped flowers-one, two, or several-in a terminal raceme, the upper sepal short and broad, the two lower sepals narrow and curved, the two upper petals battle-dore shaped, with the lip deeply three-lobed, and total dependance on insects for fertilisation. Fitzgerald observed that from the compact nature of the pollen masses and the readiness with which they may be moved by the slightest touch of the rostellum, they must be most frequently fertilised by the pollen from other flowers. He noticed an affinity in stigma, rostellum and anther, to Thelymitra ixioides, and produced seed by crossings between this species and Diuris. Many botanists disagree with Bentham's arrangement of the genus, and consider that he has grouped species in some instances that should have been kept distinct.
T. laevis, Fitzgerald; smooth.
A slender species, 8 in. to 1 ft. high. Leaves from 3 to 6 in.
long, numerous, spirally twisted, enclosed at the base by a sheath,
Flowers, two to six, light yellow, petals elliptical, about 1 in.
long including the dark brown claw. Lateral sepals, linear, green.
Upper sepal almost triangular, embracing the column, about half the
length of the other sepals. Lip three-lobed, lateral lobes half the
length of the central one falcate and toothed along the upper
edges, streaked with dark brown; central lobe ovate-rhomboid,
linear at base, brown markings. Wings of column same length as
column, toothed, (Described "Fitzgerald's Australian Orchids," Vol,
2.)
W.A. Albany, Busselton, Gosnells, York. September
-October.
D. Purdiei, Diels; honouring Alexander Purdie, M.A.
A small species 6 or 8 in. high. Leaves narrow-linear, 2½ to
3 in. long. Upper sepal shorter than the lateral petals, lateral
sepals pointed, longer than the lip. Lateral petals with a long
claw, elliptical, yellow with purple veins, Lip three-lobed, with
two short raised lines, middle lobe large, almost rhomboid, much
longer than the small half-ovate lateral lobes, which are deeply
cleft on the outer side. Easily recognised by the narrow leaves and
by the lip very different to other narrow-leaved Diuris
species. (Described Journal Proceedings Mueller Botanical Society,
April, 1903). Favours wet sandy flats.
W.A.: Bridgetown, Cannington, Pinjarra. October.
D. setacea, R. Brown; bristly.
Leaves 8 to 10, linear, spirally twisted. Flowers sulphur yellow.
Lip with a single keel from base to apex, middle lobe somewhat
spreading (From description by
O. H. Sargent, in Journal W.A. Natural History Society). Favours
loam and clay soil.
W.A.: Albany, Dumbleyung, Jarrahdale, Katanning, Pindalup,
Pinjarra October- November.
D. carinata, Lindley; keel-shaped, referring to the
keel-like structure of parts of the flower.
"BEE ORCHID"
Leaves, four or five, awl-shaped. Stem about 1 ft. high. Flowers
about ¼ in. wide and 1 in. long, yellow, with a purple spot
at base and apex of upper sepal and petal. Lip with a double-keeled
claw, middle lobe rather closely reduplicate, one-keeled. (From
description by O.H. Sargent in Journal W.A. Natural History
Society.) Favours swampy places and wet clayey flats.
W.A.: Busselton, Darling Range, Highbury, Katanning, Kojonup,
Maddington, Pindalup, Toodyay, Wagin, York, September -
October.
D. filifolia, Lindley; thread-like leaves.
This species and D. carinata were not considered distinct by
Bentham from D. setacea. Dr. Diels (Journal Proceedings
Mueller Botanical Society, April, 1903) states: "I am quite sure
that these (D. setacea, D. carinata, and D.
filifolia) are three different species resembling each other in
foliage, but very different in flower. D. carinata, Lindley,
I believe to be the shorter, stouter plant found in the Darling
Range near Perth." Lindley's original description states that the
stem is much shorter than the sharp-point leaves, flowers yellow,
labellum lobed at middle, almost round at base, and one-keeled.
This species is not recognised as distinct by Dr. Rogers from D.
carinata
W.A.
D. emarginata, R. Brown; notched at margin.
A species closely resembling D. carinata but taller, stouter
and larger flowered. Leaves semi terete. Petals without spots,
often emarginate. Middle lobe of lip somewhat spreading. Both this
species and D. carinata inhabit swampy places and flower in
October. They often occur together when intermediate forms, which I
think must be hybrid, are found among them." (Description and note
by O. H. Sargent, Journal W.A. Natural History Society)
WA: Albany, Harvey, Vaisse River, York. October.
D. longifolia, R. Brown; long leaf.
"DAMSEL ORCHID " "DINGO ORCHID" "DONKEY ORCHID" "PANSY
ORCHID"
From under 1 ft. high to considerably more. Leaves linear,
narrow or broad, usually very long. Flowers, three to five,
occasionally more, variable in size, yellow and brown, sometimes
heavily suffused with purple, when the resemblance to a pansy is
marked. The two upper petals are often 3/4in or more long, erect,
and are supposed to be like the ears of a donkey, lower sepals as
long, long, linea or dilated above the middle. Upper sepal short
and very broad. Lip three-lobe from the base, lateral lobes nearly
as long as the middle one, middle lobe contracted into a claw at
base, with a fairly prominent line along the centre. A common
species favouring all conditions of soil and situation.
W.A.: Widely distributed
New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria.
D. pauciflora, R. Brown; few-flowered.
A slender plant, 6 in. to 1 ft. high. Leaves very narrow. Flowers,
one to three, yellow and purple. Petals ovate, about 1/2 in. long,
including the very short claw, lateral sepals not reflexed, linear,
but rather broader than in most species. Upper sepal shorter. Lip
three-lobed from the base, lateral lobes not half as long as middle
lobe, with a slight central raised line not half the length of lip.
Favours wet sandy flats.
W.A.: Albany, Kalamunuda, Mt. Barker. October -
November.
Microtis, R.
Brown
[my-krow-tiss]
From mikros, small, and ous, otos, an ear; referring
to the appearance of the anthers.
A genus commonly called "Mignonette Orchids" in Western Australia, and somewhat similar to Prasophyllum in habit, but easily distinguished from it by the smaller flowers numerous on a terminal spike, which are usually greenish and not reversed. The stigma is enclosed within a hood formed by the lateral appendages of the column. Fertilisation is performed by insects, which, by touching the very small and sensitive rostellum, cause the pollen either to fall and adhere to the stigma, or be carried by them to aother flower. Like Prasophyllum, species are considered difficult to identify.
The genus Microtis extends to New Zealand and also to New Caledonia, Java, Formosa, Philippines, Japan and Southern China. Seven of the nine Australian species are endemic.
M. porrifolia, Sprengel; leek-leaved,
A tall, stout species over 1 ft. high, with a long leaf and dense
spike of small greenish flowers, Lateral petals relatively wide,
oblong-oval, much shorter than the recurved lateral sepals, upper
sepal wide, concave. Lip with three callosities on the disk,
notched at tip, the margin usually crisped.
W.A.: Albany, Darlington, Swan View. October.
All other Australian States.
M. truncata, Rogers; truncate, referring to shape of
lip.
A plant of slender habit. Spike about 8 & 1/2in. long, bearing
about 40 distant flowers. Flowers light-coloured, on short stalks,
subtended by a small awl-like bract reaching a little above the
base of the much twisted ovary. Petals linear-falcate, as long as
lateral sepals, which are recurved or rolled back in mature
flowers, upper sepal broad; lip truncate with three well-defined
callosities, two at the base and one in the middle extending almost
to the tip. (Described Transactions and Proceedings Royal Society
S.A., XLIV., 1920.)
W.A.: - Albany, Greenbushes, Jarnadup. December.
M. parviflora, R. Brown; small-flowered.
A slender plant about 3 in. high. Leaf-lamina leek-like, usually
much exceeding the inflorescence. Flowers green, on short stalks,
smaller than those of M. porrifolia, commonly in a fairly
dense spike, but the latter often attenuated. Lateral sepals
recurved or revolute in the mature flower. Lip entire, with two
well-defined callosities at base, none at tip.
WA.
All other Australian States.
M. media, R. Brown; intermediate.
A tall species, leaf narrow, flowers white, much recurved, lip
notched at tip, with two definite lateral basal callosities.
W.A.; Albany, Jarnadup, Pinjarra, York.
September-December.
M. alba, R. Brown; white.
Stems often above 1 ft. high. Leaf with a long sheath, the blade
often exceeding the spike. Flowers numerous, much incurved, white,
in a sometimes very dense spike. Lateral sepals rolled back. Upper
sepal acuminate, contracted at the base. Lip broadly two-lobed, the
margins wavy or fringed. Favours all varieties of soil.
W.A.: Albany, Cannington, Dumbleyung, Greenbushes, Harvey,
Jarnadup, Jarrahdale, Mandurah, Pindalup, Stirling Range, York.
October - December.
M. orbicularis, Rogers; disk-shaped labellum.
Stem rush-like, Lip to about 12 in., leaf sometimes longer,
sometimes shorter than the spike. Spike, rising at a slight angle
to the stem, not crowded and with a flatter appearance than in
other species of the genus. Flowers, light green, minute, sessile.
Dorsal sepal forms an obtuse hood over the column, lateral sepals
about the same length or shorter than dorsal sepal, shorter than
lip and hidden by it. Lateral petals very minute and spreading,
points curving backwards. Lip broad and obtuse, projecting
downwards. Column very small, with distinct linear auricles.
Favours swampy ground.
W.A.: Bellevue, Cannington, Highbury, Pindalup. October.
South Australia.
M. atrata, Lindley; blackened, referring to the specimens
drying black.
A minute species. Leaf short but with the long sheath reaching
almost to the tiny flowers in a rather dense spike of 1/2 to 1 in.,
lateral sepals very blunt, not hidden, spreading, not recurved or
revolute, upper sepal broad, lip broad, entire. Grows in wet
places.
W.A.: Albany, Gosnells, Guildford, Kalamunda, Midland Junction,
Pindalup,
South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria.
M. pulchella, R. Brown; beautiful.
Stem slender, under 1 ft. Leaf narrow and short. Flower-spike not
dense, rarely 2 in. long. Upper sepal blunt, not much broader than
the spreading lateral sepals; petals incurved over column, same
length but much narrower than lateral sepals.
W.A.: Swan View. September.
M. gymnadenoides, Diels; like Gymnadenia.
Stem slender with one basal scale, 10 to 18 in. high. Leaf
rather long, the free part from 4 to 7 in. Spike rather long,
narrow, cylindrical. Flowers white, upper sepal broad, ovate,
concave, with a small point at the top; lateral sepals spreading,
not recurved, rather blunt, much like the lateral petals, but a
little broader. Lip crisped in the middle part, the disk marked by
two small appendages, and bearing a small thickening towards the
end. (Described Journal Proceedings Mueller Society, April, 1903).
Note by Dr. Diels: "Collected close to Albany toward the north in
wet, sandy flats. This species seems to be related to M.
pulchella. It is different, however, from Bentham's
description, in the longer leaf, the dorsal sepal wider and more
concave, the crisped margin of the labellum, and the larger
flowers."
W.A.: Albany district. November.
Goadbyella,
Rogers
[goad-be-ella]
Honouring Lt.-Colonel B. T. Goadby, a West Australian
botanist and collector.
A genus most closely related to Microtis, but with flowers reversed, column more slender and elongated, dorsal sepal narrow and non-cucullate, and lateral sepals wide and truncate.
G, gracilis, Rogers; graceful.
A very slender plant with the leaf-blade reaching well above the
base of the spike. Flowers reversed, numerous, greenish-yellow,
small, rather distant and pedicellate below, much closer and
sessile above. Dorsal sepal narrowly oblong, or ob-cuneate, very
blunt at the apex, incurved over the column. Lateral sepals
spreading below the lip, free, oblong, truncate; margins of the
lower half entire, then wavy and fringed with calli, part of
surface more or less ornamented with groups of calli. three-nerved.
Petals erect, linear, slightly falcate, very blunt, one-nerved,
nearly equal to the column. Lip sessile, basal margins entire,
expanding into two some-what rounded lobes with waved margins
fringed with glandular calli lamina three-nerved, with two raised
parallel lines in the lower half and a group of glandular calli
near the middle of expanded portion. Column somewhat slender,
narrow and not winged below, expanded abruptly at the apex,
auricles long and oblique, oblong with rounded apices. (Described
Transactions Royal Society of S.A., LI., 1927.) Favours jarrah
forest. Note by Dr. Rogers: "This plant forms an interesting link
between Prasophyllum and Microtis, both of which it
resembles in habit. From Prasophyllum it is readily
distinguished by the shape of the labellum, and especially by a
very different column. The lateral sepals of Goadbyella are
broad truncate and very ornate, in striking contrast to the same
segments in species of Prasophylum and Microtis".
W.A.: Pindalup. November
Prasophyllum, R.
Brown
[praise-o-fill-um ]
From prasos, a leek, and phyilos, a leaf; referring
to the leek-like leaves.
Species of this genus are commonly called "Leek Orchids.' The genus is easily recognised by the sheathing leaf and spike of small inverted flowers, but many of the species are difficult to determine. The spikes of whitish flowers tinged or streaked with green and purple, are not specially attractive to the flower hunter, yet the beauty of a single bloom when beheld through a magnifying-glass is amazing. The sepals and petals are narrow and inconspicuous. The lip on the upper side of the flower is broad and slightly waved at the edge, often bearing an inner plate The column is very short.
The various species of Prasophyllum are wholly dependent on insects for fertilisation, and there is a marked difference in the number fertilised according to situation. Sometimes solitary plants will not have a single flower fertilised, yet when growing in groups, generally in a rushy flat-perhaps the haunt of some particular insect - every flower on every plant will be fertilised. Hybridisation of different species is common and no doubt responsible for specimens that have been collected bearing flowers on the same spike having characteristics of species so different as to have been placed by Bentham in separate sections dividing those with a rigid sessile lip from others having the lip on a short claw.
P. australe, R. Brown; southern.
Often slender, usually over 1 ft. in height. Leaf-blade usually
shorter than the spike. Flowers, sessile in a rather loose spike,
sweet-scented, with prevailing tints of white, brown and green.
Perianth segments all very acute, sepals nearly equal in length,
the dorsal one erect or recurved, or recurved, ovate-lanceolate,
the lateral ones sometimes free at extreme base, and united beyond
almost to the tips. Petals erect yellowish-green with wide
reddish-brown stripe down the centre, narrower and rather shorter
than the lateral sepals Lip conspicuously white, callous part
prominently raised, ending close to the bend, ovary long and very
slender. An uncommon species.
W.A.
All Australian States. October-December.
P. elatum, R. Brown; tall.
"PIANO ORCHID"
This species is well named as it is one of the tallest
terrestrial orchids in Australia. West Australian children see a
resemblance in the pearly white of the lip and the darkly streaked
sepals and petals in the long spikes of closely set flowers to the
black and white keys of a piano. The stem is sometimes 6 ft. high,
with the long sheath covering a great part of it. Flowers largely
white, often dusky, tinged with green and purple, nearly sessile in
a spike of 4 to 8 in. or more. Lateral sepals united from about the
middle almost to the tips, petals usually spreading. Lip as long as
the petals, ovate-oblong, the margins wavy, and the inner plate
occupying the greater part of its surface. Lateral appendages
exceeding the column in height. A common species found in all
classes of country.
W.A.: Widely distributed. September.
New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria,
P. Muelleri, Andrews; honouring F. von Mueller.
A tall plant, often 4 ft. in height, differing from P.
elatum in that the lip instead of being sessile is hinged on a
short claw. Lateral sepals often quite free. Favours stony
ridges.
WA.: Swan View. September.
P. regium, Rogers; king-like.
A robust plant up to 3 ½ ft. or more, leaf not reaching
to top of flower-spike. Flowers white, tinged with green and
purple, in a rather loose spike sometimes 16 in. long, cormposed of
upwards of 50 flowers, with lower blossoms distant. Lip on a
distinct claw, recurved at right angles, inner plate thin,
membraneous, orbicular-lanceolate, margin entire, extending nearly
to tip, no secondary plate. Lateral appendages of column exceeding
rostellum in height. (Described Transactions Royal Society S.A.,
Vol. XLII., 1918.)
W.A.; Manjimup. December.
P. lanceolatum, Rogers; lanceolate, referring to the
shape of perianth segments and lip.
A rather slender plant, about 18 in. high, with two long
overlapping tubular sheaths at base of stem. Leaf-blade about 6 in,
long, not reaching as high as spike. Spike about 6 in. long.
Flowers rather distant, dark reddish-brown segments of perianth
narrow-lanceolate, upper sepal nearly ½ in. long, slightly
incurved, longer than lateral sepals. Lateral petals shorter. Lip
on a very short claw, about ¼ in. long, lanceolate,
membraneous border narrow, not crisped, margin entire, almost
plain, inner plate relatively large, lanceolate, extending to
within a short distance of the apex. (Described Transactions and
Proceedings Royal Society, S.A., XLIV., 1920.)
W.A.: Albany, Muresk, Perth. October.
P. ellipticium, Rogers; referring to shape of lip.
A tall, robust plant of about 3 ft. Spike rather crowded with
numerous pale green flowers, nearly 1 ft. long. Leaf-blade not
reaching to top of spike. Flowers sessile on a slender ovary.
Perianth segments (excepting lip) rather narrow; lateral sepals
about ½ in. long, upper sepal longer, lateral petals
shorter. Lip on a very short claw, elliptical, about ¼ in.
long and ¼ in. wide, erect at base, recurved to-wards the
tip, outer membraneous margin white, wide and voluminous, much
crisped inner plate also membraneous oval, with a rather blunt
short apical projection commencing about the bend but not nearly
reaching the tip, attached to outer plate at base and apical
projection, margin otherwise free. Lateral appendages of column
exceeding the rostellum in height. (Described Transactions and
Proceedings Royal Society S.A., XLIV., 1920.)
W.A.: Jarnadup. December.
P. fimbria, Reichenbach fil; fringed.
A tall species with the habit and size of flowers of P.
elatum, but with a very different lip. Flowers white, shaded
with purple. Sepals nearly ½ in. long, petals shorter,
linear. Lip as long as sepals, on a tiny but distinct narrow claw,
upper part broad with fringed or crisped margins, inner plate
ending above the middle in a broad, free, densely crisped margin,
and within it in the centre of the lip, a more or less conspicuous
second plate with scarcely prominent entire margins. Distribution
general and common.
W.A.: Albany, Darlington, Jarnadup, Mundijong. September
December.
P. hians, Reichenbach; yawning.
Stem 4 in. to 2 ft. or more high, leaf-sheath loose. Flowers white,
tinged with reddish-green or with purple markings, in rather a
dense spike. Sepals over ¼ in. long, the lateral ones united
almost to the apex, very thin and whitish near their line of
junction; petals longer than lateral sepals, more dilated than in
other species. Lip sessile, rather broad at base, but not swollen,
recurved above the middle, margins wavy, the inner-plate much
narrower, olive-green coloured, forming a longitudinal central
thickening, ending at the bend or a little beyond it, in a thick
fringed callus. A common species.
W.A.: Widely distributed. October.
P. cyphochillum, Bentham; curved lip.
Stem 1 to 2 ft., leaf-blade short and slender. Flowers small,
white tinged with reddish-purple, lip with a swollen base forming a
short pouch protruding between the lateral sepals.
W.A.: Albany, Darling Range, Gosnells, Highbury, Perth, Pindalup, Wagin, Welshpool, York, September.
P. ovale, Lindley; oval.
Stem slender, above 1 ft. high, leaf-sheath and blade long.
Flowers small, white tinged with green and purple, in a spike of 3
to 6 in., not dense. Lateral sepals and petals linear, all nearly
equal, upper sepal
white, wider than other segments. Lip nearly as long as lateral
sepals, oval, membraneous part white, with entire margins, slightly
scalloped towards the tip, callous part smooth, green. triangular,
extending from the base to slightly beyond the middle, shiny,
glandular, much narrower than the membraneous part, not swollen at
base. A common species.
W.A.: Albany, Darlington, Gosnells, Highbury, Kalamunda,
Narrogin, Perth, Pindalup, Stirling Range, Wagin, York, September-
October.
var. triglochin, Reichenbach fil; Rogers.
Note by Dr. Rogers "Lateral petals 2.5 mm, long; sepals 3 mm. long;
labellum oval or bluntly elliptical, 2.5 mm. long. The leaf of this
species is stated by Bentham to have a long lamina. An examination
of a large number of specimens in the field and herbarium indicate
that the leaf-lamina is almost invariably short as in the case of
P. cyphochlum.
W.A.: Lake Chockerup.
P. macrostachyum1 R. Brown; long spike.
A slender plant; flowers, greenish-white, sometimes deep purple
rather distant in a long spike. Lateral sepals awl-shaped, twice as
long as petals.
This orchid is occasionally found with the spike once-forked for
about half its length, giving it a double-headed appearance.
A light green variety favours moist places in loamy clay soil, and
dark purple flowered form is found on clay flats covered in winter
months with standing water.
W.A.: Albany, Dumbleyung, Highbury, Katanning, Kojonup, Midland Junction, Narrogin, Pindalup, Swan View, Waddering, September - October.
P. attenuatum, Fitzgerald; attenuated.
A very slender, wiry species, 12 to 18 in. high, leaf 9 in., blade
3 in. Flowers about 40, not dense, on a spike of about 5 in.
Lateral sepals not two lines, greenish with white edges, oblong,
cucullate at the ends with blunt points. Dorsal sepal about 2 lines
oblong, hardly acuminate, slightly recurved. Lip about 2 lines
ovate-oblong, pouched at end. Disk about two-thirds length of lip,
hardly raised above it, with five slight ridges towards the end.
Lower lobe obtuse. (Described Gardener's Chronicle, XVII.,
pp.495.)
W.A.: Bunbury. September.
P. plumaforme, Fitzgerald; feathery.
A slender species, 12 to 18 in. high. Leaf about 6 in., blade
hardly 2 in. Flowers about 40 in a long feathery spike.
Sepals and petals oblong, acuminate, about 2 lines. Lateral
sepals white with green stripes. Dorsal sepal red-brown edged with
white. Petals white with purple stripe. Lateral sepals not united.
Lip not curved, oblong, tapering, slightly reflexed for about
one-third of its length, two parallel raised lines on the disc.
Lateral appendages of column falcate, acuminate; unequally
two-lobed. Rostellum slender, longer than the appendages, anther
short, hardly acuminate. (Described Gardener's Chronicle, XVII.,
pp.495.)
W.A.: Albany. August.
P. triangulare, Fitzgerald; triangular-shaped lip.
A rather robust species, 12 in. or more high, very dark coloured.
Leaf about 10 in. long, blade about 5 in. Flowers dark red brown,
about 30 in a long spike, lateral sepals united almost to their
points, together ovate-acuminate, glandular at base and along
joined edges. Dorsal sepal rather longer, about 3 lines. Petals
lanceolate, shorter than sepals. Lip about 2 lines on a rather long
claw, triangular, very slightly recurved, edges entire, slightly
undulate, the disc forming a raised triangular plate nearly as
large
as lip, somewhat swollen towards point and irregularly covered with
small sessible calli. Appendages to column broad at base, falcate,
acuminate, equal in length to rostellum, thickened on outer margin
with three or more callosities. Anther much shorter than rostellum,
hardly acuminate. (Described Gardener's Chronicle, XVII.,
pp.495.)
W.A.: Albany. October.
P. parvifolium, Lindley; small-leaved.
Stem slender, 9 in. to over 1 ft. high, the leaf above the middle
of the stem, with a short slender blade. Flowers white and green,
faintly streaked with crimson, five seven or less, in a loose
raceme of 2 or 3 in.
W.A. Albany, Bayswater, Busselton, Greenmount, Kalamunda, Muresk, Swan View, June-September.
P. gibbosum, R. Brown; curved.
Stems from under 6 in. to 1 ft., leaf-sheath long, with a long
narrow-linear blade. Flowers in a rather dense spike sepals and
petals obtuse. Lip nearly as long as the sepals, linear-oblong, the
upper part recurved, margin slightly wavy the inner-plate not very
conspicuous.
W.A.: Gosnells. September.
P. cucullatum, Reichenbach fil; hooded, referring to the
formation of lateral sepals.
A species closely allied to P. gibbosum, and considered by Bentharn
to be perhaps a variety only, but admitted as distinct by Dr.
Rogers. A smaller plant with usually a dense blunt spike, 1 to 1
½ in. long, of white and purple sweet-scented flowers, but
sometimes single-flowered. The lateral sepal. are the shortest
segments of the perianth, and are joined a their extreme tips,
forming a hood in front of the lip. Upper sepal dark purple at the
base, purple stripe down centre. Lip on a long springy claw, at
first erect, then bent forwards almost at a right angle.
W.A.: Pinjarra, Porongorups, Ravenswood. September -
October.
Caleana, R.
Brown
[caley-ann-er]
Named in honour of George Caley, an early collector of New South
Wales plants. Sometimes called Caleyana.
An Australian genus closely related to Drakea, but readily distinguished from it by the wide wings of the column forming a kind of pouch open or closed by the movements of the irritable lid-like lip, which acts as a trap for insects forced against the column by the spring of the lip. Ovary usually recurved, reversing the flower. Fertilised by struggling insects that are caught and held.
C. nigrita, Lindley; dark.
"LADY'S SLIPPER ORCHID"
A small plant with a radical ovate leaf. Stem about 6 in. high.
Flower reversed, usually solitary, reddish-brown to deep purple, on
stalk of ½ to 1 in. Segments of the perianth narrow-linear.
Lateral sepals incurved and appressed against the dilated wings of
the column. Upper sepals incurved and appressed against the back of
the column. Petals narrow at base, then spathulate, appressed
against column wings. Lip on a springy claw, lobed. Column
yellowish green, wings forming a boat-shaped pouch. Often found
associated with Drakaea elastica.
W.A.: Boyup Brook, Collie, Maida Vale, Peel Estate.
Spiculaea,
Lindley
[spy-cue-lay]
Meaning a little spike
An Australian genus of 3 species separated from Drakaea because of differences in the structure of the column. Eastern states species are known as "Elbow" or "Hammer Orchids." In Drakaea the auricles and wings of the column are broadly and bluntly triangular, and are situated near the base of the column. In Spiculaea they are actually long-triangular in shape, being placed towards the base of the column.
S. ciliata, Lindley; hairy.
"ELBOW ORCHID"
A small species from 2 ½ to 5 ½ in. high. Stem
rigid, becoming dark red as the plant dies. The leaf withers when
the flower scape is about 1 ½ in. high. When the flowers
begin to open the stem slowly withers from the base upwards,
leaving moisture conserved in the upper portion of the plant.
Flowers from 2 to 6 in a spike, tan coloured. Dorsal sepal
narrow-linear, nearly ½ in. long, concave, glabrous, tip
blunt, curved, and pointing downwards; remaining sepals amost
thread-like, bent back along pedicel. Lip greenish, movable on a
short claw at base of column, and attached to claw by a linear
stalk under ½ in. long, hanging vertically downwards; lamina
of ~ip hammer-shaped, tapering to a blunt tip. Lower portion o~
lamina smooth, with a narrow flesh curved tooth projecting upwards,
margins rolled inwards. Upper portion of lip with concave margins
fringed with dark glandular hairs, tip dark-coloured, blunt. Column
rather shorter than dorsal sepal, curved downwards. Wings narrow,
extending downwards from tip of column. U-shaped, ending in
thread-like points. Favours dry granite shelves and crevices wet in
winter through seepage from higher soil. Often associated with
Borya nitida.
W.A.: Boya, Bruce Rock, Swan View, York. October -
November
Drakaea, Lind1ey
[drake-ee-er]
Named in honour of Miss Drake, a botanical artist.
A West Australian genus of plants commonly called "Hammer Orchids," owing to the curious hammer-like appearance and action of the lip, delicately poised on a slender, hinged, stem-like claw Flowers dull, dark reddish-purple and green, sepals and two petals narrow and inconspicuous. Leaf solitary at, or near, the base of stem.
Fitzgerald disagreed with many botanists regarding the sensitiveness of the lip of Drakaea assisting in the fertilisation of the species, except by attraction, and questioned its often asserted power of impelling an insect against the column.
D. elastica, Lindley; springy.
"PRAYING VIRGIN"
Stem, 6 in. high or more, leaf heart-shaped, thick and fleshy,
about ½ in. diameter. Flower, solitary. Sepals and petals
linear, about ½ in. long, lateral sepals and petals
reflexed; dorsal sepal longer and erect. Lip very elastic, top of
the basal portion covered with short thick hairs or calli, lower
lobe solid and fleshy, half as long as the upper part, upturned at
tip. The lower section of the arm on which the lip is supported, is
marked with dark and light bands. Favours sandy flats, often found
near burnt logs associated with Caleana nigrita.
W.A.: Albany, Gosnells, Collie, Jarnadup, Kendenup, Maylands,
Margaret River, Pinjarra, York. September - October.
D. Fitzgeraldii, Schlecter; honouring R. D.
Fitzgerald.
The following translation from the German of Schlecter's
description (Fedde, XVII., 1921, pp.81) has been kindly supplied by
Dr. R. S. Rogers: "This plant has been incorrectly identified with
D. elastica, Lindley, from which it certainly differs
specifically. The leaves are more roundly ovate, and not so
distinctly reniform or circular; the stem is generally shorter. The
lateral sepals and petals are not directed downwards, but curved
forwards and backwards so that they cross one another. The labellum
is furnished with warty growths to beyond the middle, and
particularly in the middle and along the margins; anteriorly it is
distinctly turned upwards with an emarginate apex; the posterior
extension of the labellum, which in D. elastica is
distinctly narrowed in the lower part, is in this species plainly
elongate. Likewise the margins of column are more conspicuously
widened than in D. elastica
Locality: District of Perth, flowers September, This species is illustrated under the name of D. elastica by Fitzgerald in 'Australian Orchids,' Vol. II., Part I. (1884), plate 4."
D. glyptodon, Fitzgerald; lip resembling a glyptodon.
A species somewhat like D. elastica, but differing in the
proportions and surface of the lip, the longer lobe being very
hairy except at its extreme tip which is smooth but not up turned,
shorter lobe glandular but not hairy. The whole lip resembles in
form (miniature, of course) the enormous extinct tortoise-monster,
glyptodon, a creature as large as an ox and covered with tesselated
scales. Favours moist sandy flats
W.A.: Boyup Brook, Collie, Margaret River, Pinjarra. October -
September
D. Jeanensis, Rogers; honouring Jean S. Rogers. 
Somewhat similar to D. elastica and D. g1yptodon. Leaf emerald-green, radical, orbicular or heart-shaped, glabrous. Stem very slender.
Flowers bright reddish-brown, longer lobe of lip quite smooth except for a few hairs at extreme base near insertion of claw, not glandular, not upturned at tip, shorter lobe very glandular and densely covered with branching hairs.
(Described Transactions and Proceedings Royal Society, S.A., XLIV., 1920.)
Often found associated with D. glyptodon.
W.A.: Maida Vale, Pinjarra. October.
Pterostylis, R.
Brown
[terro-style-iss]
From pteros, a wing, and stylos, a style.
The largest and one of the most interesting genera among Australian orchids, The various species are commonly called "Greenhoods" because of the shape and colour of the flower usually greenish, tinged or streaked with red or brown. The main part of the hood (known botanically as the galea) is formed of the upper sepal and the two lateral petals, lightly attached. The two lower sepals are joined to form a kind of forked door to the front of the hood. The lip usually is irritable, small and tongue like, with a spur at its base, and is placed inside the joined lower sepals. The long column concealed within the hood is winged hence the name Pterostylis.
The genus includes nearly sixty known species, of which over 40 are Australian, and most of these are endemic. It extends to New Zealand, New Caledonia and New Guinea. Species of Pterostylis, owing to the curious formation of the flowers and what one might term their "habits," are of particular interest to botanists and scientists. The genus is mentioned by Darwin in his book on the fertilisation of orchids, as follows:-
"The flap of the labellum is irritable and hangs out below the hood. If an insect lands on it, it instantly moves and imprisons the visitor against the column, and the only mode of escape is by squeezing past the stigma. After half an hour the lip goes down again and is ready for another capture."
This peculiarity is known to most children, who love to touch a sensitive lip and watch its lightning upward spring. P. vittata, commonly called "Cockatoo Orchid," a species common in Western Australia, is a favourite for such demonstrations. Fitzgerald's observations upon the genus and individual species, recorded in his work on Australian orchids, are intensely interesting, as are also the published notes of Dr. R. S. Rogers.
Fitzgerald formed the opinion that, in spite of Nature's marvellous schemes to ensure fertilisation of the various species of. Pterostylis, they are seldom reproduced naturally by seeds, and that the fact of their being found so frequently in groups pointed to reproduction by tubers or leading roots, which may be swept out of the ground by heavy rain-storms, rooted up by animals or ants, and washed or blown away, to vegetate elsewhere. It has been found, however, that many varieties of Pterostylis can be cultivated from seed, as well as by transplantation, quite easily, and healthy plants in various stages of development may be found nourishing in the greenhouses of many orchid lovers.
In Mr. O. H. Sargent, Western Australia has an orchid enthusiast who is not only an accomplished botanist, but a keen student of Nature. From him we learn that the flowers of some species of Pterostylis contain sticky juices that attract and intoxicate visiting insects, thus compelling them to remain within the flower long enough either to effect fertilisation there, or make sure of pollen being attached to body or wings to be carried on subsequently to another flower.
Plate II.
Two species of the genus in P. barbata and P.
turfosa, the latter endemic to Western Australia and known as
the "Bird orchid," supply a most striking illustration of that
characteristic so often quoted as one by which an orchid may be
easily recognised
-the difference of the third petal or "lip" to the other two and
the sepals. No contrast could be greater than the long and slender
thread-like protruberance bearded with bristling hairs, to the
solid structure of the rest of the flower.
P. nana, R. Brown; stunted.
"SNAIL ORCHID"
A small slender plant. Leaves in a radical rosette, lower
stem-leaves heart-shaped, upper ones lanceolate, stem-clasping.
Flower over ½ in. long, erect, abruptly curved towards the
end. Lower part broadly cuneate, about 1-3 in. long without the
linear-subulate lobes, the long points embracing the galea. Lip
linear, obtuse, about ¼ in. long. Column half the length of
the galea, the wings with a small lanceolate upper lobe or tooth,
the lower lobe oblong and obtuse. Favours moist shady places.
W.A.: Albany, Busselton, Highbury, Jarnadup, Mt. Barker.
September - October.
New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania. Victoria.
P. pyramidalis, Lindley; pyramid-like, referring to the
foliage growth.
"GNOME ORCHID" "GREEN DEVILS" "SLY ORCHID"
A species of variable size, sometimes nearly 1 ft. high. Leaves
usually crowded at base of stem, passing gradually into stem leaves
and scales, but the basal leaves are not always present. Flowers
green, similar to P. nana. By some botanists this species is
not considered distinct from P. nana, plants of intermediate
form being often found. Dr. Rogers, however, is of the opinion that
the two species are distinct.
W.A.: Albany, Gosnells, Jarnadup. Margaret River, Riverton,
Stirling Range, York. August - October.
P. reflexa, R. Brown; bent back. (See P. robusta.)
P. robusta, Roger.; sturdy.
"SHELL ORCHID"
A slender species, plant without any rosette of ovate radical
leaves at time of flowering. Stem leaves lanceolate, usually four
or five including the floral bract. Flower whitish green with
deeper green longitudinal stripes, rather large single. Galea
gradually curved forward at the apex; dorsal sepal with a short
slender point, lower lip erect, sepals tapering to thread-like
points, embracing and much exceeding the galea. Lip irritable, on a
movable claw, practically straight lanceolate, tapering into a
point, in the erect position very slightly exceeding the column.
Column erect, the upper angle of the wing acute, the lower lobe
oblong-obtuse with in turned ciliated margins. Prefers shady places
and favour coastal districts, frequently being found beneath
peppermint trees (Agonis flexuosa). Note by Dr. Rogers:
"Apparently with some hesitation, this plant was included by
Bentham in P. reflexa, R. Brown. It differs from the latter,
however, in its shorter stem, wider leaves, and relatively short,
straight labellum which does not protrude through the sinus of the
lower lip, as in the sinus of R. Brown's plant."
W.A.: Albany, Ludlow, Margaret River, Swanbourne, York. May -
July.
All other Australian States
P. Rogersii, Coleman; honouring Dr. R. S. Rogers, M.A.,
M.D., F.L.S.
A plant of from 4 to 8 in. in height. Radical leaves not present
at time of flowering, stem leaves 4 to 7, lower leaves bract-like.
Flower, solitary, translucent white or grey, with red stripes on
perianth segments, column and labellum. Galea slightly bent but not
abruptly curved. Lower lip erect, sinus acute. Lip on an irritable
claw, markedly recurved, protruding through the sinus, lamina
tapering to a long obtuse point. Column erect. (Described
"Victorian Naturalist," Vol. XLVI., September, 1929.) Favours sandy
soil.
W.A.: Augusta, Bunbury, Busselton, Collie, Ludlow, Margaret
River. June - July.
P. constricta, Sargent; contracted.
A small one-flowered specis about 3 in. high, first leaves ovate in
a radical rosette. Flower stem slender, flexuose, without radical
leaves, but having narrow-lanceolate leaves that increase in length
up to ¾ in. towards top of stem. Flower ¾in. long,
bright or bronze green, upper sepal and petals forming hood-like
galea. Lateral sepals joined at base and erect in front of galea,
the upper portions with a deep V-shaped separation, then tapering
into erect points embracing the galea. Lip on a short claw,
lanceolate, blunt, edges sharply turned down about two-thirds of
the way between base and apex, and just above this constriction,
the lip bends abruptly forwards: appendages to the lip densely
hairy. (Described Journal Proceedings Royal Society W.A., No. 4,
1907.)
W.A.: Bruce Rock, Narrogin, York. July - August
P. recurva, Bentham; bent back.
"ANTELOPE ORCHID" "BULL ORCHID"
Stems 1 to 1½ft. high, rigid, flowers one to three,
without radical rosette of leaves, reddish-green, over an inch
long. Lip triangular, ending in a rigid point. This species is
easily identified by the conspicuously recurved or bent back points
of the lower sepals. Grows usually in low scrub.
W.A.: Albany, Bayswater, Busselton, Dumbleyung,Highbury,
Kalamunda, Kendenup, King's Park, Perth, Kojonup, Stirling Range,
Swanbourne. August - September.
P. turfosa, Lindley; growing in a damp place.
"BIRD ORCHID"
Stem short, slender, one-flowered, leaves linear, all nearly
equal and equally distant along the stem. Flower green, mottled and
striped, the edge of galea and lower sepals tinged with red. Galea
upright, over 1 in. long, with a long point, and much contracted in
the middle, thus forming two openings or doorways to the interior
of the flower, the lower ostensibly for the entry of insects, and
the upper one for their departure only, entry there being prevented
by an arrangement consisting of a barricade formed by the crossing
of the upper angles of the column wings, further safeguarded by two
hairs that are automatically released from the point of the galea
when the flower is ready for fertilisation, and cross each other in
front of the opening. This device, however, does not hinder the
egress of an insect visitor. Lower part of galea linear, with
spreading lobes ending in long points. Lip thread-like, bearded
with long lateral hairs, and having a clavate point. This orchid
has been confused by many collectors with P. barbata, an
Eastern States species. Favours moist, shady spots, chiefly loamy
clay.
W.A.: Albany, Gooseberry Hill, Jarnadup, Mahogany Creek,
Parkerville, Pindalup, Pinjarra, Woogenellup, York, August -
October.
P.rufa, R. Bwown; reddish.
Stem 6 to 10 in. high with several bracts. Leaves in a radical
rosette wither before the flowers are out. Flowers, three to four,
often more green than red. Galea nearly ½ in. long, curved,
with a long, fine point in front. Lower part on a rather long basal
projection of the column and hanging down from it, the sepals
terminating in long fine points, variable in length. Lip on a short
claw, obtuse. Column reaching to end of galea.
W.A.: Bencubbin, Boyup Brook, Bruce Rock, Wongan Hills, York.
October - November.
All other Australian States.
P. Sargentii, Andrews; honouring O.H. Sargent.
Stem 3 to 5 in. high. Leaves in a radical rosette wither before
flowers appear. Stem-leaves or empty bracts lanceolate,
stem-clasping. Flowers. 1 or 2. Galea about ½in. long,
curved forward. Upper sepal ending in a short upturned point,
lateral petals very shortly pointed, their junction with the upper
sepal marked by lines of white hairs inside the galea. Lower part
½ in. long, pointing downwards, the lobes ending in very
short thread-like points. Lip on a broad claw, glabrous,
three-lobed, the middle lobe triangular, not ¼ in. long,
with a ridge down the middle; lateral lobes linear-lanceolate,
slightly curved, produced at the base into erect thick club-shaped
dark brown appendages. Column nearly as long as the galea, with
short almost orbicular wings on either side of the rostellum.
(Described Journal W.A. Natural History Society May, 1905)
Note by Dr. Andrews: "The labellum and its appendages are quite
different from those of any other species and the column wings have
no lower lobe. I have not seen the lines of hairs inside the galea
in any other species."
W.A.: Bencubbin, Bruce Rock, Dalwallinu, York. JuIy -
October.
P.vittata, Lindley; banded.
"BELL ORCHID" "COCKATOO ORCHID" "HELMET ORCHID"
Often a stout leafy plant from 8 in. to over 1 ft. high. Leaves of
seedlings heart-shaped in a flat rosette; in the mature plant,
lanceolate, acute, stem-clasping. Flowers, three to seven or more,
white, banded with green, or heavily marked with reddish-brown and
purple. Galea ½ in. or more long, broad, helmet-shaped, with
a short point in front, directed downwards. Lower part broadly
ovate; recurved, with two short acuminate lobes. Lip extremely
irritable, on a strap-like claw, short, flat, obtuse, tip
emarginate. Column bent almost at right angles, broadly winged in
the middle. A common species, favouring all soils and situations,
excepting wet ground.
W.A.: Widely distributed
Acianthus, R.
Brown
[ace-ee-an-thuss, or ak-ee-an-thus]
From akis, a point, and anthos, a flower; referring
to the
Needle-like points of the sepals.
A genus closely related to Caladenia, but without calli and fringes on the lip, and differing in the leaf. Another difference hardly apparent with the naked eye, is that the discs attached to the pollen masses are ovate, thick, and connected by a solid arch. InCaladenia they are flat, triangular, and separate. Species are fertilised by crawling insects, the column being bent forward with the anther screening the stigma from direct approach.
There are about 18 species of Acianthus, mostly occurring New Caledonia. One comes from New Zealand, and five are Australian.
A. exsertus, R. Brown; projecting.
"MOSQUITO ORCHID"
A slender, delicate plant under 6 in. high. Leaf heart shaped, red
underneath. Flowers small, three to six, pink, upper sepal
incurved, concave, ¼ in. long, lateral sepals awl-shaped;
petals lanceolate, half as long as sepals. Lip as long as sepals,
oblong-lanceolate. Column slender, not winged, half as long as
sepals, protruding forward from the dorsal sepal.
W.A.: Listed as occurriug, but no record of specimen or
Localities available.
All other Australian States.
Cyrtostylis, R.
Brown
[sir or kir-toe-styIe-iss]
From kyrtos curved, and stylos, a column.
A small genus of two species, one occurring in Australia and one in New Zealand, closely allied to Caladenia, but more like Acianthus in habit, and included in this genus by some botanists. Wholly dependent on insects for fertilisation. Seed-capsules few in proportion to flowers.
C. reniformis, R. Brown; kidney-shaped.
"MOSQUITO ORCHID"
A small delicate plant. Leaf heart or kidney-shaped, radical, up
to 1½in. diameter. Stem from under 2 in. high and
one-flowered, to 6 or 7 in., with four or five pale red flowerS.
Dorsal sepal somewhat long, triangular-shaped, lateral sepals and
petals narrow. Lip as long as dorsal sepal and correspondingly
wide. Favours moist, shady places.
W.A.: Albany, Cottesloe, Greenbushes., Margaret River, Stirling Range, York. August - November.
Calochilus, R.
Brown
[kale-o-kye-luss]
From kalos, beautiful, and cheilos, a lip; referring
to the
fringed labellum.
An Australian genus of glabrous plants with one long narrow leaf, and, usually, two or three erect leaf-like, sheathing bracts on the stem. Flowers few, in a terminal raceme, with a large lip dlensely fringed. The column resembles that of Thelymitra, and the genus, apparently, is self-fertilised.
C. Robertsonii, Bentham; honouring J. G. Robertson, a
Victorian botanist.
A stout species up to 1½ ft. in height, leaf rather long.
Flowers three to five, sepals and petals acuminate, petals longer
than sepals. Lip deep prune-coloured, fringed all over.
Column-wings with a more or less distinct gland on each side in
front, connected at base.
Though listed as West Australian by F. von Mueller and included
in an official census of West Australian plants, this orchid is
either extremely rare in Western Australia, or has been missed by
present-day collectors.
New South Wales, South Australia.
Eriochilus, R.
Brown
[air-ee-o-kyle-uss]
From erios, wool, and cheilos, a lip; referring to
the
hairy or woolly surface of lip.
A genus closely allied to Caladenia, principally represented in Western Australia, but occurring also in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Tasmania. Usually hairy plants, with leaf solitary at the base of, or higher up, the stem. Flower, one or more, pink and white. Lateral sepals longer than the erect upper one. Lip shorter. Species are commonly "Parson's Bands" or "Donkey's Ears." Fertilised by insects and producing seed more freely than most orchids not self-fertilised.
E. scaber, Lindley; rough.
Slender plants under 6 or 8 in., sometimes growing in groups of a
dozen or more. Leaf radical, ovate or heart-shaped. Flowers, one to
three. Lip with small erect lateral lobes, middle one nearly
orbicular. Favours loamy flats.
WA.: Albany, Bayswater, Bussleton, Guildford, Highbury,
Jarnadup, Margaret River, Mudijong, Parkerville, Riverton, York.
JuIy - September.
E. tenuis, Lindley; slender.
A very slender species, stem glabrous, 3 to 6 in. high.
Single-flowered. Leaf radical, narrow.
W.A.: Guildford. May. Chester Pass, Stirling Range.
September.
E. dilatatus, Lindley; broad.
Stem above 6 in. Leaf at or below the middle of stem,
linear-lanceolate, sessile and stem-clasping. Flowers usually one,
two or three. Middle lobe of lip ovate-oblong. Mr. O. H. Sargent
records having found this orchid in the York district in various
soils in April and May, and that specimens with four or five
flowers are common there, also that one was collected in 1905 with
13 flowers,
W.A.: Albany. Bunbury. Kalamunda, Kings Park, Perth, Swan View,
York. April - June.
E. multiflorus, Lindey; many-flowered.
A species with the habit and foliage of E. dilatatus, but
often over 1 ft. high. Flowers smaller, white, more numerous,
sometimes over 10 in a spike or raceme. Middle lobe of lip
narrow-oblong. Favours gravelly slopes and is often found on burnt
country when the shrubs have only a few leave showing.
W.A.: Margaret River. April
Lyperanthus, R.
Brown
[lie-per-an-thuss]
From lyperos, mournful, and anthos, a flower;
referring to the sombre appearance of the best known species, L.
nigricans, when dried.
A genus of about 12 species closely allied to Caladenia
and extending to New Zealand and New Caledonia. Stems two or
more-flowered, either with one radical leaf, or two or three almost
leaf-like empty bracts, or with about two stem-leaves. The flowers
which have the appearance of coarse spider orchids, are produced
from sheathing bracts, and have the upper sepal broad and
hooded.
Fitzgerald considered Lyperanthus an unsatisfactory
inter-mediate genus, stating that it was "erroneously described by
Bentham as producing small underground tubers, whereas the roots of
L. nigricans are clustered, thick and fleshy."
L. nigricans, Brown; black.
"POTATO ORCHID" "RATTLE ORCHID"
Stem from a few inches to 1 ft. high, leaf radical, ovate, 1 to
2 in. long, thick and fleshy. Flowers, two to five, white, striped
with deep crimson, rarely pure white, enclosed by sheathing bracts;
upper sepal broad and much incurved, lower ones and petals long,
linear, curving gracefully. Lip shorter, margins fringed. Column
incurved, not winged, the circular peltate stigma very prominent.
The plants do not always produce flowers, and Fitzgerald's note on
this subject is interesting: "This species only flowers after fires
have passed. Where a fire had been, every plant produces a
flower-stem. Nearby, where the fire had not reached them, leaves of
plants were numerous, but not a single flower or bud."
W.A.: Boyup Brook, Busselton, Darling Range, Highbury, Pindalup,
Ravonswood, Stirling Range. August - October.
L. serratus, Lindley; toothed. (Caladenia serrata
Reichenbach.) A stout plant over 1 ft. high. Leaf broadly
linear, often over 1 ft. long. Flowers 4 to 6, pale green, shaded
to yellow, streaked and suffused with crimson, bracts acuminate,
over 1in. long. Upper sepal lanceolate, incurved, concave, ½
in. or more long, lateral sepals shortly acuminate. Lateral petals
narrower and longer. Middle lobe of lip recurved and brush-like at
the tip with crowded calli.
W.A.: Busselton. Gosnelli, Jarnadup, Kojonup, Pinjarra, York.
September - October.
L. Forrestii, F. Von Mueller; named in honour of Lord
Forrest. Leaves three, at or near the base of the stem, the
lowest
ovate-lanceolate, with a solitary small narrow-lanceolate leaf or
bract near the middle of the stem. Flowers white with pink shading
and deep crimson markings and dots, two or four, on rather long and
slender stalklets, bracts rather large; perianth segments about
equal, lateral sepals spreading, obfalcate, the bases very
attenuated; dorsal sepal erect, much wider, concave, lateral petals
falcate-lanceolate. Lip almost obovate with a long attenuated base,
erect in lower half, margins scalloped but not fringed, nearly
½in. long, dotted all over with minute calli. Column very
narrowly winged.
This orchid was originally collected near the Stirling Range by the late Lord Forrest.
Extract from Dr. Rogers' notes accompanying detailed and supplementary description (Transactions and Proceedings Royal Society S.A., XLIV. 1920): "The leaves of this rare plant were identified in situ at Lake Chockerup. Some young plants were removed by Dr. A. Syme Johnson cultivated in Albany, where they bloomed about the middle of November the same year. An opportunity was thus afforded to examine the plant in a living state and so supplement the original description of F. von Mueler 'from the few dried and much shrivelled specimens hitherto secured.'
Leptoceras,
Lindley
[lep-toss-er-ass]
From leptos, slender, and ceros, a horn.
Glabrous plants. Leaf short, broad and smooth. Sepals acute or rather obtuse, the upper one erect or incurved, concave, petals erect, linear-clavate (club-shaped), longer than the sepals. Note by Dr. Rogers: "The one species in this genus is closely allied to Caladenia Menziesii and the genu Eriochilus) which have been included under Leptoceras by some botanists. On the other hand the single member of the genus is commonly placed under Caladenia by taxonomist and is so included by Bentham."
L. fimbriatum, Lindley; fringed. (Caladenia fimbriata,
Reichenbach, Eriochilus fimbriatus, F. von Mueller.)
"HARE ORCHID" "FLY ORCHID"
Stems 6in. to 1 ft. high. Leaf (occasionally two) clasping stem
close to ground, about 1 in. long, ovate lanecolate or oblong.
Flowers usually two or three, purple and green. Petals erect,
longer than the sepals, clavate. Lip very broad, lobed, fringed at
the end, the disk without calli.
W.A.: Greemount, Highbury, Kalamunda, Midland Junction, South
Perth, York. May - August.
South Australia, Victoria.
Note by Fitzgerald: "Leaves much more frequently observed than flowers. It is with great reluctance I depart from the naming in 'Flora Australiensis,' but I cannot concur with the inclusion of this with Caladenia, and have placed it in Lindley's Leptoceras for the following reasons: Leaf or leaves not those of Caladenia. In Caladenia I have never seen more than one leaf, always thin and usually hairy; in this plant leaf thick, hard and shining, occasionally two. In Caladenia tubers are generally numerous, in L. fimbriata I have only observed one. The labellum, is without the characteristic glands and is not of the form obtaining in Caladenia, the stigma is very different in form being triangular and deep sunk, the upper parts overhanging, not oval and shallow; and the flowers have the peculiarity of drying and continuing in a state hardly to be distinguished from the fresh flowers long after the seed has been shed. It approaches C. Menziesii only (so far as I can see) in having erect linear-clavate petals, in which C Menziesii is itself peculiar, L. fimbriata seems to come nearer to Eriochilus than to Caladenia but differs from it again."
Caladenia, R.
Brown
[kal-a-dean~ee~er]
From kalos, beautiful, and adenos, a gland, referring
to the glands on the lip, and the great beauty of the Species
generally.
A large genus of hairy plants, with several species in New Zealand, and between 60 and 70 endemic to Australia, and chiefly) represented in Western Australia. Caldenia species are readily distinguished by the rows of calli or glandular hairs upon the lip Leaf solitary, linear-lanceolate or oblong. Flowers solitary or very few in a loose raceme, variously coloured. Dorsal sepal usually erect or incurved over the column, while the lateral petals and the other two sepals are somewhat flat and spreading. The length and shape of the petals and sepals vary considerably in the different species which are divided into easily defined sections. Species with long tapering sepals and petals are known as "Spider Orchids," and greatly admired for their dainty, fragile loveliness. Nature has been kind to Western Australia, as in addition to the number of beautiful species of Caladenia she possesses, most of them have been distributed with a lavish hand.
Botanists have differed regarding the classification of some species of Caladenia and closely allied genera, which have been placed in various lists claiming to be authoritative, under different names. This is confusing to beginners and necessitates endless explanation.
After Western Australia, Victoria is the Australian State most favoured with Caladenias, having 20 species, which, with the exception of five (including Caladenia Patersonii, found in all the States), are different to West Australian varieties. New Zealand has several species of Caladenia, New South Wales has 17, Queensland 5, South Australia 18, and Tasmania 12, and the genus is represented in New Caledonia and the Malay Archipelago. The Australian species are all endemic, with the exception of C. carnea, which is recorded from Java.
C. Menziesii, R. Brown; honouring Archibald Menzies,
naval surgeon and botanical collector.
"BUNNY ORCHID" "RABBIT ORCHID"
Stems slender, 6 to 9 in. Leaf ovate-lanceolate, usually 1 or 2 in.
long, sometimes 7 in. long and 2 in. broad. Flowers white and pink,
one or two on long stalks, lateral sepals lanceolate, acute, nearly
½in. long, upper sepal concave and incurved. Petals much
longer than the sepals, erect, narrow-linear, clavate, giving the
flower a two-horned appearance. Lip undivided, ovate, erect at
base, recurved towards the end, calli more or less distinctly
arranged in two or four rows. Favours moist, shady places.
W.A.: Widely distributed. September - October.
Tasmania, South Australia, Victoria.
C.fimbriata, R. Brown. Fringed (See Leptoceras fimbriatum.)
C. discoidea, Lindley; disc-like or round, referring to
the shape of lip.
"ANTELOPE ORCHID" "BEE ORCHID" "STAGS HEAD ORCHID"
Stem 1 ft. or more. Leaf broadly linear or lanceolate 6 in. or
more long. Flowers often two or three, yellowish green tinged with
crimson. Sepals ½in. or more long, shortly acuminate, upper
sepal narrow, erect, incurved and concave lateral sepals
lanceolate, somewhat falcate, spreading, petals longer and
narrower. Lip not much shorter than sepals broadly ovate, veined,
undivided, fringed, very shortly contracted at the base, calli
irregularly crowded, the lower ones often longer and club-shaped,
the two lowest conspicuously so. Column narrow and incurved at
base, broadly winged in upper half, with two red glands at the
base, which gleam within the flower like the eyes of insects. Grows
usually in loose sandy soil.
W.A.: Bullsbrook, Cape Leeuwin, Collie, Darlington,Pingelly, Pinjarra, Wagin, York. September -October.
C.Cairnsiana, F. von Mueller; honouring the Rev. Adam
Cairns, of Melbourne.
"ZEBRA ORCHD"
Stem about 6 in. Leaf linear. Flower solitary pink shaded,
sepals and petals narrow-linear,
about ½in long,
not produced into points, appressed against the ovary; lip erect
against the column, as long as sepals, on a very short claw,
elegantly veined with deep reddish-purple divergent lines, margins
entire, calli crowded in two rows. Column narrow, much curved at
the base, broadly winged upwards. Favours loamy soil.
W.A.: Boyup Brook, Kojonup, Mount Barker, Pingelly, Porongorups,
Stirling Range, York. September - October
C. multiclavia, Reichenbach; much clubbed, referring to the club-shaped calli.
Stem 6 in. to 1 ft. Leaf short and very hairy. Flower, usually
one, sometimes two, greenish~yellow, sepals and petals streaked
with red, about 1 in. long; lateral petals lanceo1ate-falcate,
spreading, the inflated portion somewhat exceeding the point; upper
sepal retracted at base, then incurved, sharply falcate, with long
fine rigid point, narrower than lateral sepals. Lateral petals
lanceolate-falcate, wider than dorsal sepal, not quite so wide as
lateral sepals, lightly adhered to the margin of the upper sepal
from the stigmatic wing of the column almost to their tips, giving
to the column a hooded appearance and making it look very wide.
Lip-ovate-rhomboid or a rather long and slender claw, generally
vertical, slightly recurved from about the middle; dark red clavate
calli collected on upper part of claw and central portion of base
of lip. Column retracted horizontally almost at right angles then
in curved, wings very large, bluntly and widely falco-triangular
This orchid is easily distinguished by the horizontal position of
petals and sepals with points turned upwards, by the nodding lip
with alternate yellow and dark red bands, and by the numerous dark
red calli placed on a fleshy cushion on lip Favours "Jam"
(Acacia acuminata) country.
W.A.: Baandee, Datatine, Highbury, Katanning, Pingelly,
September-October.
C. reticulata, Fitzgerald; net-like, referring to the
veining of the lip.
"VEINED CALADENIA"
Flowers large, usually solitary, rarely two, yellow, shaded and
streaked with red. Sepals usually clavate, lateral petals shorter,
spreading. Lip on a distinct claw, curiously veined in a
criss-cross fashion, ovate, slightly toothed. Calli, shaped like a
golf-club, in four-six rows. Column retracted at base, therefore
erect and incurved, widely winged.
W.A.: Boyup Brook, Gilgerring, Woogenellup. September.
South Australia. Victoria,
C. filamentosa, R. Brown; thread-like, referring to the
tips of sepals and petals
Leaf narrow-linear. Flowers usually red, sometimes yellow, or with
red perianth and white lip veined with crimson; sepals and petals
narrower than in C. Patersonii. Calli with flat oblong tops,
always in two rows only on the basal half of the lip. Often found
growing in groups with the root tubers entangled, and as many as 40
flower stems bunched lightly together with charming effect. Favours
loamy clay soil.
W.A.: Widely distributed. August - September.
New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria,
C. Dorriernii, Domin; honouring Capt. A. A. Dorrien-Smith
D.S.O.
A slender graceful plant, Stem about 6 in., with one
narrow-linear leaf of same length, and having a short linear
spreading bract about the middle. Flower solitary, base of peduncle
sheathing, about 1 in. long, dark coloured. Sepals and petals 1 in.
or more long, narrow-lanceolate-linear, three veined, thin,
glabrous, with dark-coloured, thread-like, elongated tips densely
glandular-villose. Lip nearly an inch long middle part provided
with a few obtuse teeth. Calli in two series, each consisting of
seven or eight calli placed closely against the middle of the
lip.
WA.: Kojonup. October,
C. tentaculata, Tate; with tentacles, referring to the
long and slender perianth segments.
A species not considered sufficiently distinct by Dr. Rogers, to be
classed as other than merely one of the many forms of C.
filamentosa. Mr. Sargent reports this orchid as being common in
various soils in the York district in August and September, and
that two varieties occur there-one with sepals and petals yellow.
In the other they vary from pale to deep crimson and the parts are
pendulous. (See Journal Natural History Society, WA.).
C. Patersonii, R. Brown; honouring Col. W. Paterson,
Lieut.Governor of New South Wales and Tasmania.
"SPIDER ORCHID"
Stems 1 to 2 ft. high. Leaf linear-lanceolate. Flowers usually
white, or yellowish-white with reddish-brown stripes down the
centre of the perianth segments. Sepals and petals spreading,
except dorsal sepal, which is upright, more or less dilated in the
lower part, but not clavate, tapering to long points. Lip usually
with purple or crimson tip and calli, ovate-lanceolate on a short
claw, undivided, the basal half erect, with acutely toothed
margins, tip acute, recurved, calli rarely extending beyond the
bend, linear-golf-stick in type, in 4-6 rows. Column incurved,
winged narrowly in lower part, widely above. Not common and range
limited. Favours moist clayey patches.
W.A.: Highbury, Kojonup, Pindalup. October.
All other Australian States.
Bentham, working from dried specimens, without having seen the flowers in a fresh state, was unable to separate several, to him, doubtfully distinct forms of C. Patersonii; including C. filamentosa, C. longicauda, and C. dilatata.
Variety longicauda, Roger.; long-tailed.
"WHITE SPIDER ORCHID"
Flowers white and pink, with very long dusky tentacles, which
are covered with glandular hairs. The lip is not typical in shape.
It is ovate-oblong, with the apex usually very obtuse. The lateral
margins have long graceful combings about as far as the middle,
thereafter the margins are serrate to the apex; calli linear, in
four to six rows. Favours light or loamy soil.
W.A. Widely distributed and common. September - October.
Orchid-hunters acquainted only with Eastern States specimens of Caladenia Pattersonii, invariably are amazed at the development of this Western Australian variety. Stems are frequently over 2 ft. 6 in. high. The outstretched tentacles (often dilated again towards the end) sometimes measure 12 in. across, and some plants bear as many as five perfect blossoms. It has been pointed out by Dr. Rogers that natural hybridism is responsible for a great deal of confusion with filamentous Caladenias, These often are linked by intermediate forms and pass imperfectly from one into the other.
C. pectinata, Rogers; toothed like a comb.
"RED-LIPPED SPIDER ORCHID"
A tall handsome species. Flowers yellowish, with dark red
markinghs on perianth segments and lip. Dorsal sepal erect or
slightly incurved, with clavate points. LateraI sepals spreading,
backwards, shorter than sepals. Lip on a short claw, margins deeply
toothed with a comb-like fringe. Calli in four rows increasing to
6-8 rows near the apex of the lip
W.A.: Widely distributed September - October.
C. lobata, Fitzgerald; lobed, referring to the column
wings.
"BUTTERFLY ORCHID"
A tall robust species, considered by Fitzgerald to be the most
beautiful of the Caladenias. Leaf oblong-lanceolate
sheathing at the base, over 1 in. wide. Flowers, one or two, pale
greenish-yellow, shaded, streaked and spotted with crimson. Petals
linear, tapering to a long point. Sepals dilate for about an inch,
then passing into long fine points. Upper sepal erect and much
curved forward, lateral sepals sharply curved upward. Lip
three-lobed, 1 in. or more wide, lateral lobes elegantly fringed;
calli of the disk linear, crowded for about one-third of the lip in
two bands which unite into one at the base. Column with no glands
at the base, wings dilated into an ear-like lobe about the centre.
The lip of this magnificent orchid swings lightly on a narrow claw,
and has theappearance of a butterfly poised upon the flower, its
wings trembling and vibrating in the breeze.
W.A.: Bluff Knoll, Stirling Range, Upper Kalgan River. September
- October.
C. dilatata, R. Brown; widened, referring to the broad
lip.
"GREEN ORCHID"
A handsome species. Flowers yellowish-green, shaded and streaked
with crimson, but sometimes without any red on perianth or lip.
Lateral sepals turned upwards almost at right angles. Lip
three-lobed, the middle lobe in typical specimens deep crimson,
curving back with a horn-like appearance, and the wide-spreading
lateral lobes usually fringed. Calli crimson, long, slender,
club-shaped, closely packed in the centre of the disk in four rows.
The lip moves freely on a hinge-like claw. Column winged, with two
distinct glandular calli at the base. Favours clayey soil.
W.A.:Albany, Cape Leeuwin, Greenbushes, Katanning, Kojonup,
Perth, Stirling Range, Wagin, York. September -November.
New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria.
Var. rhomboidiformis, Coleman; rhomboid in form,
referring to lip.
A slender early-flowering variety resembling C. dilatata in
colour, but with shorter, broader perianth segments; lateral sepals
pendant, neither crossed, spreading or deflexed. Lip rhomboidal,
without the wide green lateral lobes and combs of the type, dilated
portion shortly fringed, toothed towards the apex. Calli thick and
fleshy. (Described "Victorian Naturalist," February, 1930.)
W.A.: Augusta, Boyup Brook, Busselton, Capel, Forest Grove,
Mundaring, Waterloo. September - October.
C. radialis, Rogers; radial, referring to lip
markings.
A graceful species from 6 in. high. Flowers, one or two, rather
large, yellow and reddish-brown, with dark lines on the perianth
segments and lip. Segments lanceolate and dilated at the base,
narrowing to shortly hairy thread-like tails, marked with
reddish-brown lines. Dorsal sepal erect, in-curved, three-nerved.
Lateral sepals and petals a little longer, 3-5 nerved, spreading.
Lip on a slender movable claw, somewhat ovate, much recurved at
apex, margins usually entire, rarely slightly serrate, lamina
decorated with dark radial nerves. Calli yellow, linear-golf-stick
type, densely crowded in six rows on the lower part of lip, ending
about the middle of the lamina. Column erect, incurved, winged
throughout,but widely so just below the anther. (Described
Transactions Royal Society S.A., Vol. LI., 1927.)
W.A.: Beverley, Dowerin. September.
Note by Dr. Rogers "This species replaces the plant in Western Australia hitherto regarded as conspecific with C. clavigera, Cunningham. Its lip differs considerably from that of the Eastern species, not only in shape, but also in the presence of the six rows of densely crowded calli and a number of dark radial lines. Its column is also quite differently winged, has a very blunt anther without a mucrone, and is without the usual double yellow calli at the base. The segments of the perianth are not clavate."
C. bicolor, Rogers; two-coloured.
A species about 8 in. high, rather closely approaching C.
radialis, but differing in the relatively shorter petals, and
in the presence of two oval calli at the base of the column. Flower
solitary, rather large, yellowish, with reddish-brown stripes and
markings. Dorsal sepal erect, incurved, linear, with conspicuous
reddish-brown line on lower half, then contracted into a terete
tail covered with dense, short reddish-brown glandular-tipped
hairs. Lateral petals similar but rather longer, spreading. Petals
lanceolate, retroflexed, otherwise similar to sepals, Lip on a very
slender claw, ovate, at first erect against the column, then
recurved to an obtuse tip; margins dark reddish-brown, entire
except near the apex where they are very shortly sinuate, lamina
longitudinally concave, basal half yellow with conspicuous
reddish-brown divergent stripes, the recurved apex part dark
reddish-brown and bare. Calli linear, with fleshy heads, golf-stick
type, arranged rather indefinitely in six rows extending to about
the middle. Column erect, with hatchet-shaped wings on either side
of the stigma, and more narrowly below. (Described Transactions
Royal Society S.A., Vol. LIV., 1930.)
W.A.: Swan River district, Muresk. September.
C. clavigera, Cunningham; club-bearing, referring to the
clubbed tips of sepals.
"CLUBBED SPIDER ORCHID"
A species with the habit of C. Patersonii, Sepals usually
about 1 in. long, lanceolate at base with long fine points usually,
but not always, clavate at the tips, petals shorter but not
clavate. Lip under ½ in. long, the broad yellow lateral
lobes quite entire, the purple middle lobe either entire or
slightly scalloped towards the base, calli in about four rows (See
C. radialis.)
W.A.: Albany, Beverley, Tukurua. September - October. New South
Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria,
C. longiclavata, Coleman; long-clubbed.
A robust species from 6 in. high. Leaf lancelolate. Flowers, one or
two, maroon and yellow, perianth segment. slightly spreading,
except the dorsal sepal, which is erect and incurved, with wide red
central stripes; sepals and petal. longly and heavily clavate for
more than one-third of their length. Lip ovate, yellowish, apex and
calli maroon, not tremulous, lateral margins shortly fringed,
toothed towards the much recurved apex. Calli in four rows, rarely
six. Column incurved, widely winged above, much narrower below.
(Described "Victorian Naturalist," February, 1930.)
W.A.: Boyup Brook, Busselton, Capel, Donnybrook, Forest Grove.
September - October.
C. plicata, Fitzgerald; folded, referring to the folded
tip of labellum.
"CRAB-LIPPED ORCHID"
Stem about 1 ft. high. Leaf lanceolate, 7 or 8 in. long, about
¼ in. broad, sheathing at the base. Flowers usually two,
almost horizontal, yellowish streaked with red. Petals
narrow-lanceolate, sepals lanceolate at the base for about half
their length, then narrow-linear, clavate. Upper sepal erect,
recurved. Lip crab-shaped, nearly ½ in. wide, fringed, on a
long slender claw, with the same trembling movement as in C.
lobata,, Calli of the disk dark crimson, linear, clavate, crowded
into a band down the centre of the lip. Column winged from the
base, with two oval-shaped calli near the base.
W.A.: Lake Chockerup, Mt. Barker, Porongorups, Tukurua.
September - October.
C. cristata, Rogers; crested, referring to the calli
arrangement.
A slender plant about 1 ft. high, leaf linear, about 4 in long.
Flower solitary, segments of perianth yellowish-green with a
central red streak; sepals nearly 1 in. long, upper sepal erect,
incurved lanceolate. Lateral sepals wider, acuminate spreading,
lateral petals linear-lanceolate, narrower and shorter than the
sepals. Lip reddish-brown, veined, mobile on a short claw,
heart-shaped, edge rolled under a little and entire, calli on long
stalks, crowded into a conspicuous, rather narrow, dense crest
along the centre, extending from the claw almost to the apex,
hi-lobed near the claw, and more or less linear near the apex.
Column almost equal in length to lip, much incurved and very widely
winged in the upper half. This species resembles C. plicata,
Fitzgerald, in the shape of its column and the arrangement of
its calli, but differs in the absence of the clubbed sepals and
fringed lip margins. Type specimen collected on an alluvial flat,
near a creek, 20 miles south of Pithara, by Dr. E. S. Simpson, of
Perth, a keen orchidologist. Specimens were plentiful. (Described
Transactions Royal Society S.A., XLVII., 1923.)
W.A.: Pithara. September.
C. macrostylis, Fitzgerald; large style.
A slender species from a few inches to 8
in. high. Leaf linear-lanceolate, sheathing at base, 4 to 5 in.
long. Flowers, one or two, pale yellow streaked and veined with
red. Sepals and petals lanceolate, tapering to a short clavate
point. Lip on a short claw, ovate-lanceolate, veined, the dark red
edges thickened with glandular denticulations on the margins of the
apex. Calli dark reddish-brown in a broad band extending from near
the base of lip almost to the point, clavate, closely packed.
Column nearly ½ in. long, wide, much bent and very broadly
winged from the base to half way up the anther. Found in loam,
laterite, or forest country. Fitzgerald found this orchid on the
edge of a swamp near the Upper Hay River in September.
Dr. Rogers' note regarding its situation is as follows: "This
orchid chooses the most barren of ironstone country on which to
grow. On the Upper Kalgan a few specimens occupied a small area of
ground shunned by every other living plant. At Mount Barker it was
quite numerous amid scrub almost equally inhospitable."
W.A.: Albany, Boyup Brook, Busselton, Collie, Highbury,
Jarnadup, Kelmscott, Mt. Barker, Pindalup. September -
December.
C. Drummondii, Bentham; honouring James Drummond, an
early West Australian pioneer, botanist and collector.
A small species, leaf ovate-lanceolate, ½ in. by ¼
in. Flower solitary on a stalk of 2 to 3 in. Sepals and petals
resembling C. hirta (which has white, pink-shaded flowers),
about ½ in. long, including the dark-coloured point, about
as long as the whitish dilated part. Lip with lateral lobes broadly
rounded, entire, recurved, calli in about 4 rows. Bentham states
that without much character in the flower this species differs from
the whole genus in the shape of the leaf. It is either very rare,
or easily overlooked, as its collection is unrecorded since first
found by Drummond in the Swan River district many years ago, when
the specimens were forwarded to England. Its discovery would be
hailed with delight by present-day collectors.
W.A.: Swan River district.
C. triangularis, Rogers; triangular.
A species with the habit of C. Patersonii, about 9 in. high.
Flower solitary, cream-coloured, with reddish-brown lines. Dorsal
sepal erect with three reddish longitudinal lines dilated below,
contracting gradually into a moderately short glandular point as in
C. hirta; lateral sepals similar to dorsal sepal, but wider
and rather longer, spreading. Petals with one red longitudinal
line. Lip clawed, ovate-triangular in outline, lateral lobes rather
deeply combed, middle lobe triangular, shortly fringed or dentate,
lamina with radiating red lines at the base. Calli lamina orange,
in 2 rows, not extending beyond the middle. Column curved, more or
less erect, widely winged above, more narrowly below. (Described
Transactions Royal Society S.A., Vol. LI., 1927.)
W.A.: Highbury. September.
C. hirta, Lindley; hairy.
A very hairy species, 1 ft. high or more. Leaf oblong or
lanceolate, 2 to 4 in. long. Flowers two or three, white, shaded
with pink. Sepals and petals ¾ to 1 in. long, irregularly
acuminate, points much shorter than in C. Patersonii. Lip
sessile, broad and undivided, more or less fringed from the middle
upwards, recurved. Calli in four-six regular rows. Favours chiefly
loam or laterite.
W.A.: Albany, Darlington, Narrogin, Stirling Range, Toodyay.
August - October.
C. lavandulaceae, Rogers; like lavender.
A very slender species with the habit of C. Roei, but
differing in the segments of the perianth, in the conspicuous
veining of the lip and in the calli on the disk; up to 10 in. high.
Flowers lavender, conspicuously marked with radiating lavender
lines; all segments of the perianth with conspicuously clavate dark
glandular tips, lavender in colour, traversed by darker
longitudinal lines, lanceolate, subequal in length and similar in
shape. Dorsal sepal retracted backwards, the other segments
spreading. Lip mobile, very slenderly clawed, almost transversely
oval in out line, with entire margins, large rounded lateral lobes,
middle lobe relatively small, blunt, dark purple, recurved; lamina
with conspicuous radiating dark lavender veins. Calli dark purple,
fleshy, stalked, compactly crowded. Column at first retracted, then
incurved, widely winged in the upper half. Leaf narrow-linear,
acute, hairy, channeled, between 4 and 5 in. long. (Described
Transactions Royal Society S.A., Vol. LI., 1927). Favours sandy
loam and usually found associated with marri gum (Euca1yptus
calophylla).
W.A.: Highbury, Narrogin, York. September.
C.
Roei, Bentham; honouring J. S. Roe, first Surveyor-General of
Western Australia.
"ANT ORCHID"
Stem 6 to 8 in. Leaf' narrow-linear. Flower solitary,
greenish-yellow. Sepals and petals about ½ in. long, points
much shorter than the dilated part. Lip on a distinct claw,
½ in. or more wide, lateral lobes light-coloured, broad, not
fringed, middle lobe smaller, recurved, fringed with short calli.
One or more large calli between the lateral lobes at the top of the
claw, and small crowded sessile ones usually along the centre of
the disk.
W.A.: Cootarring. Dumbleyung, Gnowangerup, Highbury, Katanning,
Narrogin, Wagin. September - October.
C. Bryceana, Rogers; honouring Miss Bryce Maclntyre.
A tiny plant, under 2 in. in height, closely related to C. Roei.
Flower solitary, rather less than ½ in; long; upper sepal
hairy, spathulate, incurved, about same length as lateral sepals,
but wider. Lip freely movable on a rather long claw, with wide
green lateral lobes, middle lobe (tip) short, blunt, triangular,
studded with reddish-purple glands, recurved and then reduplicated.
Calli dark, reddish-brown, standing up conspicuously in four dense
rows nearly to the tip. On the claw near the base of the disc, is a
large purplish-green clavate hi-lobed projection. Column much
incurved, with large hatchet- shaped wings. No yellow glands at
base of column. (Describe Transactions Royal Society S.A., Vol.
XXXVIII., 1914.)
W.A.: Gnowangerup. September.
C. Douchae, Sargent; honouring Miss L. Doutch.
A species varying in height from 4 in. to 1 ft., stem slightly
hairy, leaf linear-lanceolate, from 3 to 4 in. long Flower
solitary, green with purple stripes. Dorsal sepal erect lanceolate,
acuminate. Lateral sepals lanceolate, caudate, margins revolute.
Petals decurved, linear and lanceolate, margins revolute, tips
acuminate. Lip broadly elliptical, margin entire, middle lobe
small, oblong, obtuse, reflexed, Calli short, thin, clavate in two
or three rows. Column incurved, glands at base dark purple.
(Described "Journal of Botany," Vol.59, June, 1921). Note by Mr. O.
H. Sargent: "This new species closely resembles C. Roei, from which
it is readily distinguished by its delicately caudate sepals and
purple-veined labellum with extremely small and slender
calli."
W.A.: Datatine. September.
C. barbarossae, Reichenbach; red-bearded.
"ANT ORCHID"
Stem 6 to 10 in. Leaf narrow-oblong or lanceolate, about 2 in.
long. Flower solitary, greenish-yellow, streaked and shaded with
reddish-purple. Lip on a long claw, lateral lobes linear-falcate
and erect; one long club-shaped callus at the top of the claw and
two short linear ones, with two lines of small calli on the middle
lobe.
W.A.: Bridgetown, Boyup Brook, Perth, Woogenellup, York. September - November.
C. flava, R. Brown; yellow.
"BUTTER ORCHID" "COWSLIP ORCHID"
Leaf lanceolate, rather long for the plant. Flowers two to five,
usually yellow, but sometimes pink and in intermediate forms, white
speckled with magenta. Sepals and petals broadly lanceolate, acute,
contracted at the base, lateral sepals often above 1 in. long,
upper sepal smaller, with more or less distinct reddish lines or
blotches along the centre. Lip ¼ in. or more long and broad,
with a very short concave claw, deeply three-lobed, lateral lobes
ovate, middle lobe longer and lanceolate, bordered on each side by
several long calli. Calli of the disk in two rows almost in a
semi-circle. Column winged from base. Usually found around burnt
trees, particularly marri gum.
W.A.: Widely distributed and common. August - September.
C. paniculata, Fitzgerald; bearing flowers in
panicle
A small species, leaf oblong-lanceolate, 2 or 3 in. long. Flowers
three to six, in a flat panicle, white and pink, sepals and petals
narrow, lanceolate, about 1-3 in. long. Lip shorter, three-lobed,
the central lobe lanceolate, fringed with club-shaped calli,
lateral lobes large and erect; calli of the disk about20, linear,
in two rows, united by a long central callus extending from the
short claw two-thirds of the length of the lip. Column winged from
the base. Favours sandy or loamy soil, often clustered at base of
gum trees.
W.A.: Armadale, Balbarrup, Gosnells, Karridale, Pinjarra,
Ravenswood, Swan View. September - October.
C. Purdieana, Andrews; honouring Alexander Purdie,
M.A.
A slender species 8 in. high or less. Leaf lanceolate, 2 or 3 in.
long, nearly ½ in. wide in the upper part. Flowers, pink,
usually two or three, sepals and petals nearly equal an spreading,
about ½ in. long, lanceolate, acute, petals rather narrower
than sepals, white and glabrous above, more or less covered with
rusty brown hairs below. Lip on a claw with a narrow longitudinal
plate, three-lobed, at first entire, then bordered by two rows of
thick divergent calli, no central callus as in C.
paniculata, which this species resembles, upper part of the
recurved middle lobe fringed with shorter calli, the end with a
sinuate margin; lateral lobes shorter, erect, broad, obtuse and
entire. Column short, incurved, very narrowly winged. (Described
Journal Proceedings Mueller Botanical Society, 1902.)
W.A.: Albany, Bullsbrook, Kelmscott, Midland Junction, Pinjarra.
October - November.
C. unita, Fitzgrald; united, referring to the sepals.
Stem from 3 in. to 1 ft. high. Leaf linear-lanceolate, from 3 to 6
in. long. Flowers pinkish-mauve, hairy on the out-side, two or
three on long or short stalks. Petals lanceolate, acute, contracted
towards the base. Lower sepals lanceolate-falcate, united for
nearly two-thirds of their length. Lip about ¼ in. long on a
long claw, ovate, much recurved and fringed with linear calli.
Column winged to the base, wings produced into oblong lobes on each
side of the stigma.
W.A.: Albany, Boyup Brook, Busselton, Darling Range, Greenbush,
Manjimup, Pindalup, Sterling Range. September - October.
C. latifolia, R. Brown; wide leaf.
"PINK FAIRIES"
Stem 6 in. to 1 ft. high. Leaf oblong or lanceolate, 1½
in. to 4 in. long. Flowers pink or white, usually two or three.
Lateral sepals sometimes 1 in. long, oblong-lanceolate, obtuse,
upper sepal shorter and more acute, petals shorter and more
lanceolate. Lip deeply three-lobed, fringed near the base with a
few marginal calli, the long calli of the disk linear, club-shaped,
in two short rows, more or less converging in a semi-circle. Column
shortly and rather broadly winged at the apex. With this species
Bentham unit C. marginata, Lindley, and C. ochreata,
Lindley. Favours limestone hills.
W.A.: Albany, Bridgetown, City Beach, Perth, Darlington, Harvey,
Jarnadup, Kojonup, Weld River, Yallingup. October - December.
All other Australian States.
C. reptans, Lindley; creeping.
A small one-flowered species closely resembling C.
latifolia, considered by Bentham to be perhaps a variety, and
not distinctive from C. Preissii, Reichenbach. Middle lobe
of lip not recurved, calli more or less united, arranged in two
converging rows across the disk. Dr. Rogers' comment on this orchid
is that it must be extremely rare and seldom collected. The doctor
has been unable to secure a specimen.
W.A.: Mahogany Creek (Fitzgerald), Darling Range, and Blackwood
River (Diels). August.
C. nana, Endlicher; stunted.
A little pink orchid considered by some botanists identical with
C. reptans. Dr. L. Diels has expressed the opinion that it
is distinct. (Journal Proceedings, Mueller Botanical Society,
April, 1903).
W.A.: Albany district.
C. tenuis, Fitzgerald; slender.
A very slender species from 5 to 20 in. high. Leaf lanceolate,
sheathing at the base, from 3 to 5 in. Flowers one to three, petals
and sepals white, with a pink stripe down the centre, light brown
towards the end, the colour produced by closely-set sessile calli.
Petals linear, acute. Sepals broader than petals and a little
longer. Dorsal sepal erect. Lip about five lines long,
narrow-lanceolate without lobes, point reflexed. Calli of the disk
linear in two bands of four rows each, the point of the lip without
calli on the surface but edged with linear calli. Column about five
lines, very slightly bent, winged from the base, anther with rather
a long point.
W.A.: Champion Bay. August.
C. carnea, R. Brown; flesh-coloured; var. alba, Bentham,
white.
A species found in all the Eastern States, but only recorded
comparatively recently in Western Australia. Typical
specimens have been collected by Mr. Sargent in the York district,
with odourless flowers, sepals and petals rusty-grey outside;
glistening white inside. Dr. Andrews in a note accompanying his
description of C. Purdieana (Journal Proceedings, Mueller
Botanical Society, December, 1903), states that his species bear
considerable resemblance to C. carnea, var.
alba, in general appearance, though the leaf is much broader,
the dorsal sepal less erect, and the tuft of erect calli, appearing
near the base of the claw of the lip in C. carnea, var. alba, is
absent.
W.A.: York. September.
All other Australian State..
C. saccharata, Reichenbach; sweet.
"DWARF WHITE ORCHID"
A species somewhat resembling C. carnea. A small plant
about 3 in. high, leaf narrow-linear. Flower small, white, lateral
sepals spreading, broader than the lateral petals, dorsal sepal
erect or incurved. Lateral lobes of 1ip somewhat falcate, middle
lobe linear-lanceolate, entire, yellow. Calli yellow, club-shaped,
closely packed in two very yellow rows, extending almost to apex of
middle lobe. Column purple, incurved. Often associated with
tea-tree scrub, mallet bark and she-oak.
W.A.: Bencubbin, Dumbleyung, Highbury, Mt. Barker, York.
September.
C. aphylla, Bentham; without leaves.
Stems almost thread-like, glabrous, 1 to 1½ ft. No leaf at
all at time of flowering. Flower solitary, whitish or pale yellow,
sepals and petals narrow-lanceolate, tapering at the base, ¾
to 1 in. long, upper sepal erect and concave. Lip 3-lobed, more
than half as long as the sepals, contracted into a claw, lateral
lobes falcate, middle lobe long and tipped with yellow, calli
linear, club-shaped, in two rows. Column slightly winged.
W.A.: Albany, Hay River, Kalgan River, Tukurua, Yallingup.
April.
C. diformis, R. Brown; deformed.
Early flowering specimens rarely above 6 in. high. Flower solitary,
light blue or pale mauve, sepals and petals over ½in. long,
lanceolate, obtuse, contracted towards the base, upper sepal more
erect than the others and concave. Lip with an erect, linear claw,
ovate, obscurely lobed, calli numerous and crowded. Late-flowering
specimens of this orchid have been observed in flower on plants up
to 18 in. high. A common species.
W.A.: Widely distributed. June - September.
C. sericea, Lindley; silky-haired.
"MOUSE ORCHID"
Stems 6 in. to 1 ft. high. Leaf lanceolate, often rather broad,
1 to 3 in. long. Flowers one or two, blue, much incurved in the
bud. Sepals and petals nearly equal, ¾to 1 in. long,
oblong-lanceolate. Lip wedge-shaped, equally 3-lobed, middle lobe
recurved, shortly fringed with a few calli. Calli of disk in about
four rows. Found in all classes of soil.
W.A.: Albany, Highbury, Kalamunda, Kendenup, Margaret River,
Parkerville, Pindalup, Pinjarra, Stirling Range, Waroona. July -
October.
C. gemmata, Lindley; gem-like.
From 6 to 8 in. high when 1-flowered, taller when 2-flowered. Leaf
ovate, 1in. long, usually dark brown beneath. Flower large, deep
blue, rarely white; sepals and petals about ¾in. long,
obtuse. Lip broadly ovate, undivided, erect at the base, recurved
at the end and obtuse. Column the length of the lip, narrowly
winged. Usually found in loam clay or laterite. A common
species.
W.A.: Widely distributed. August - October.
C. pellita, Endlicher. Not considered distinct from C. gemmata by Bentham
C. Gertrudae, Ostenfeld.
(Described Ostenfeld's Contributions to W. A. Botany, Pt. 3,
Copenhagen, 1921), has been joined to C. Gemmata by Dr.
Rogers. Note by Ostenfeld: "This little known orchid resembles
C. germmata but differs in the colour of the flowers, the
almost acute petals and sepals, and having the lip longer than the
column. Collected Yallingup, September."
C. ixioides, Lindley; like Ixia.
This is possibly a variety of C. gemmata, which it closely
resembles in habit, but the flowers are yellow, with the lip not so
broad, sharp-pointed, sometimes obscurely 3-lobed, and the calli
more prominent, almost linear.
W.A.: Upper Swan, Subiaco. September.
Glossodia, R.
Brown
[glos-o-dee-er]
From glossa, a tongue, and oidos, like; referring to
the tongue-like appendage within the flowers.
An Australian genus of five species. Usually hairy plants. Leaf solitary, oblong or lanceolate. Flowers one or two. Sepals and petals obtuse, nearly equal, spreading. This genus is closely allied to Caladenia, differing in the absence of calli on the surface of he lip, but having at its base calli-like appendages, distinct and large in West Australian species. It is divided into two sections, which might easily be considered distinct genera-one, peculiar to the Eastern States only, having one bifid (or cleft) appendage the base of the column; the other, endemic to Western Australia, with two basal appendages to the column.
West Australian species are known as "Enamel" "Wax" or "China Orchids" because of the shining appearance of the waxy upper surface of the flowers which are heavily spotted on the under side.
G. Brunonis, Endlicher; honouring Robert Brown.
"PURPLE ENAMEL ORCHID"
Stem 6 in. to 1 ft. Leaf narrow-lanceolate, 1 to 3 in. long.
Flowers, one, two, or three, upper surface purple, shining, under
surface whitish, purple spotted. Sepals and petals ½ to
¾in. long, spreading. Lip inconspicuous, white, pointed and
abruptly recurved at tip, shorter than the column, lanceo1ate or
linear. Column half as long as sepals, with a broad wing produced
from behind the anther into a concave hood, and two prominent calli
at base. Favours sandy soil among jarrah trees. A common
species.
W.A.: Widely distributed. August - December.
G. intermedia, Fitzgerald; intermediate.
Stem slender, five or six. Leaf oblong, 2 or 3 in. long. Flowers
lilac-purple, solitary, sepals and petals about ½in. long
ovate-lanceolate, blunt, glossy. Lip about 1-3 in. long, linear,
obtuse, twice duplicate towards the end, not emarginate (notched)
with two enlargements towards the end, column winged from the base
to above the anther. Note by Fitzgerald:
"The flowers of this species resemble G. Brunonis, but it
flowers later, and the lip and calli at the base are more like
G. emarginata. Column narrower than in either," Seldom
collected.
W.A.: Swan View. September.
G. emarginata, Lindley; emarginate.
"PINK ENAMEL ORCHID"
A beautiful species with large rose-pink flowers, spotted
underneath, more frequently 1-flowered than G. Brunonis. Lip
red, tip U-shaped, with three longitudinal ridges, often exceeding
the hooded column in length, reduplicate. Calli-like appendages at
its base as long as lip, orange-yellow tipped with purple. A common
species.
W.A.: Widely distributed. August - December.
Corysanthes, R.
Brown[ kor-ee-san-thees]
From korys, a helmet, and anthos, a flower.
Dwarf plants with a single heart-shaped leaf, frosted in appearance below. Flowers large in proportion to size of plants, solitary, somewhat trumpet-mouthed. The lip is curiously fringed with bristle-like auricles or spurs which no doubt assist in snaring insects, for fertilisation purposes, that may visit the flower in search of honey. Fitzgerald has recorded that "the various species are capable of self-fertilisation aided by insects, but seed is seldom produced and the plants multiply by their roots and bulbs apparently. Individual plants, though several inches apart, are often united, but only one plant so joined is ever found in flower, and the connection probably lasts only one season." The genus is extensive, ranging from the Philippines, the Himalayas, through the islands to Papua, Polynesia, New Zealand and Australia. There are five Australian species.
C. pruinosa, Cunningham; frosty.
A tiny plant, rarely 2 in. high, including the flower. Leaf
heart-shaped, 1 in. in diameter. Flower reddish-purple. Lip erect
against the upper sepal, nearly ½in. long. The stalk grows
from 1½in. to 6 in. after the formation of a seed-capsule,
perhaps for the better distribution of the seed. If not fertilised,
the flower perishes on the leaf.
W.A.: Big Brook. Albany District. June - August.
A specimen of Corysanthes was found in June, 1921, at Big Brook, near Pemberton, in the "karri" country, growing on the trunk of "Blackboy" (Xanthorrhoea Preissii). It puzzled the finder, who thought it might be an epiphyte and sent it to Mr. W. Catton Grasby for identification. The collection of Corysanthes has been but seldom recorded in Western Australia, and this "find" was considered of particular interest, reproduction from seed being proved, undoubtedly, because of the situation. C. fimbriata, R. Brown, and C. pruinosa, Cunningham are doubtfully distinct species, and frequently grow intermingled in the Eastern States, where they are found occasionally growing in abundance on the trunks of tree ferns. They flower in winter and early spring. A description of C. fimbriata, R. Brown, is appended: Plant small, leaf round, cordate, pointed. Flower reddish-purple, almost sessile. Dorsal sepal erect, then incurved, gradually contracted to a claw, lamina forming a hood over and beyond the lip. Lateral sepals colourless, linear, connate at their bases with each other and with the petals. Petals somewhat wider and shorter, colourless, often bidentate. Lip large, sessile, deep crimson, lower half vertical against the dorsal sepal, enclosing the column in a split tube; upper part acutely recurved, expanding into an orifice with denticulate margins and directed forward. Tube at base dilated at each side of attachment into a wide auricle. Column short, not winged.
The orifice of the lip of C. pruinosa is not fimbriate, or scarcely so, usually having entire incurved margins.
Cryptostylis, R.
Brown[krypt-o-style-iss]
From cryptos, concealed, and stylos, a column.
A genus closely allied to Calochilus but without the fringed lip. Flowers reversed, apparently wholly depend on insects for pollination. There are 18 known species of Cryptostylis these are endemic to Australia. The others are found in Formosa, Malay, Papua, Philippines, New Caledonia, Fiji, and Samoa.
Interesting observations concerning the pollination of the genus have been made by Mrs. Edith Coleman, Mr. O. H. Sargent and Lt.-Colonel B. T. Goadby. In a paper contributed to "The Victorian Naturalist" (Vol. XLIV., May, 1927), Mrs. Coleman described the visits of Ichneumon-flies (Lissopimpla semipunctata, Kirby,) to Cryptostylis leptochila (an Eastern States species). It was definitely established that this insect visits this particular orchid purposely, enters the flowers backwards instead of in the usual manner of nectar-seeking wasps, and successfully effects pollination. The following is a quotation from Mrs. Coleman's paper:
"After backing into the stigma, the end of the wasp's body took an inward falcate curve, and the base of the flower's labellum appeared to be gripped by the claspers. This curve of the end, brought the abdomen just in position for the upper-surface, at about the second last ring, to rest on the flower's prominent rostellum, with its dark-coloured disk. The insect quivered for a moment, and then became motion-less. After a second or two, it freed itself, with an apparent effort which shook the flower, Resistance could be plainly felt when we withdrew the insect with our fingers. In every instance, when we gave it time enough, the effort was sufficient to release the pollinia, which, with the viscid disc, were carried off by the insect on the tip of its abdomen, never on any other part of the body. Owing, no doubt, to this resistance, pollen was frequently deposited on the stigma of the same flower, and more was probably carried to the stigma of the next flowers visited. Some of the insects bore pollen before they entered our flowers, while others took away more than they brought. It took at least a second to complete the act, and if we disturbed the wasp too soon, no pollen was abstracted."
In an article published in "The Journal of Botany," April, 1929, Mrs. Coleman states:
"Only males visit the orchids, in circumstances that leave no room for doubt that they are stimulated by sex-instincts, and enter the flowers under the misapprehension that these are females of their kind. . .The shape and colour of the labellum suggest the body of the female wasp, the glistening glands corresponding with the brilliant white spots on the abdomen of the insect. The narrow sepals and petals probably suggest the antennae, ovipositor, and guides. . .The female wasp has never been seen near the orchids, yet one may expose a few spikes in a locality where they are not known to occur, and in a few minutes they are visited by the male insect. . . . Apart from the resemblance of the flowers to the female wasps it is fairly certain that their perfume though almost imperceptible to us, is conveyed to the male wasps over quite long distances..The case is not so singular as was at first supposed, for observation of several other Australian orchids points clearly to similar partnerships."
In an accompanying note, Colonel M. J. Godfrey Comments upon Mrs. Coleman's observations, as follows:
". . .Dr. R. S. Rogers, the leading authority on the Australian Orchidaceae, has never seen a hybrid in the genus Cryptostylis. In this respect it resembles the North African Ophrys specu1um, which is solely visited by Dielis ciliata (Journ. Bot., 1925, p.34). The removal of the pollinia on the end of the insect's abdomen is exactly parallel with the case of Ophrys fusca and O. lutea, in which the species of Andrena concerned assume the same reversed position. Some doubt has been expressed as to whether the resemblance of the lip of the flower to the female Lissopimpla is sufficient to deceive the male. It seems to be agreed that the vision of insects is very inferior to ours. But so long as one or two salient points are suggested, exact resemblance to the insect concerned is unnecessary. The metallic blue centre of the lip and its fringe of red hair in Ophrys speculum are quite enough to convince the male Dielis ciliata that he sees the sheen of blue wings and the red-fringed abdomen of his long-looked-for mate. The shadowy and indefinite markings on the lip of O.fusca and O.lutea (which only suggest an insect to us when viewed from a distance) are quite enough to persuade an Anrena that he has found what he wants. In her second paper in the "Victorian Naturalist," 1928, p.334, Mrs. Coleman says: 'A glance at the strange labellum . . . . with its double row of dark glistening glands that gleam in the hot sunshine. . . . is perhaps sufficient to justify the theory of an attraction based on the resemblance of the flower to a female wasp. Even to our eyes the likeness is apparent. To the inferior eyesight of the insect the resemblance may be still more convincing.' Further, in all the above cases, insects are attracted to the flowers from a distance, showing that by the emission of scent or of some other attractive agency, the flowers are able to convey knowledge of their existence. That the appeal is not to the desire for food, but to the strong sexual urge of the male, was sufficiently evident in the case of certain species of Ophrys, and is confirmed in a remarkable manner by Mrs. Coleman's discovery that the sexual claspers of the male actually became engaged with the base of the labellum, so that resistance can be felt when the insect is pulled away."
In another paper ("The Victorian Naturalist," Vol. XLVI July, 1929), Mrs. Coleman described similar pollination methods by the same insects on Cryptostylis subulata and C. erecta. It was found that a faded specimen of the only West Australia species of Cryptostylis (C. ovata) held a very great attraction for the ichneumons, which hovered about it, and made many attempts to enter the limp, travel-worn bloom. Mrs. Coleman's theory is that the absence of hybrids where different species are found growing intermingled may be due to the fact that anther and stigma in various species mature at different periods, and that pollen from one species is incapable of fertilising another. ("The Victorian Naturalist," April, 1930.) Further experiments, however, are being made by Mrs. Coleman.
Observations made by Colonel Goadby and Mr. O. H. Sargent prove that cultivated plants of Cryptostylis ovata are fertilised by the same fly in similar fashion, as recorded by an article entitled "Wildflower Nuptials," by Mr. Sargent in "The West Australian" on December 14, 1929, and in a paper by Mrs. Coleman in "The Victorian Naturalist," February, 1930.
C. ovata, R. Brown; oval, referring to the leaf.
"DINGY ORCHID"
Stem 1 to 2 ft. Leaves radical, ovate to oblong, 3 to 6 in.
long. Flowers several in a terminal raceme, brownish-green, with a
prominent fleshy lip about 1 in. or more long, and the column
completely enclosed by its short broad base. Sepals and petals
narrow-linear-lanceolate. The flowers are very dingy in appearance.
This orchid is found among tangled growth in damp, shady spots of
coastal forests of the extreme South-West and on sandy flats among
paper-bark trees in the Jarrahdale district.
W.A.: Albany, Jarnadup, Jarrahdale, Porongorups. February -
October.
Gastrodia, R. Brown
[gas-trow-de-eer]
From gaster, a stomach, referring to the inflated appearance
of the flowers
Leafless herbs parasitical on roots, having several flowers in a terminal raceme on erect stalks, simple, with loosely sheathing scales. The genus extends to New Zealand, Malay Archipelago Formosa and Japan.
Plate III.
G. sesamoides, R. Brown; sesamum-like.
An inconspicuous leafless plant, stems from 1 to 1½ ft.
Flowers tubular, white, yellowish-brown at base, perianth ½
in. or more long, lobes short and broad.
W.A.: Jarnadup. December.
New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania, Victoria.
Rhizanthella, Rogers[riz-an-thel-ler]
Terrestrial saprophytic herbs, unique in Australia, possibly entirely subterranean. Rhizomes short, thickened, without roots, branching. Inflorescences erect, subsessile, solitary, terminal; those on the smaller lateral rhizomes with well developed bracteate stems. flower-heads surrounded by rather large ovate bracts.
R. Gardneri, Roger; after C. A.
Gardner. Flower-heads up to 2 in. in diameter, cup-like, bracts
whitish, ovate or oblong-lanceolate, up to 2 in. long,
over-lapping. Flowers numerous, small, sessile, dark purple,
crowded. Sepals and petals erect, dorsal sepal hooded, lateral
sepals very fleshy, widely triangular. Petals oblong-falcate,
acute, membraneous, slightly shorter and much narrower than the
sepals, forming a galea with the dorsal sepal. Lip reddish,
attached to the apex of column-foot by a delicate movable claw,
tongue-like, very large in comparison to size of flower. Column
erect. (Described Journal Royal Society W.A., Vol. XV., October,
1928.)
W.A.: Corrigin, Shackleton, Goomaling. May - June.
The discovery of this orchid at Corrigin by Mr. John Trott when cultivating virgin soil previously rolled and burned, aroused interest among Australian orchidologists. Note by Dr. Rogers, to whom specimens were forwarded for identification:
"A superficial examination of the single capitulum which first reached me, suggested that it belonged to a member of the Glomerinae, a group of orchids chiefly restricted to the Malaysian and Papuasian areas. Further examination, how-ever, showed that there were tribal differences, and that like so many Australian orchids, the new plant was neottious in character. It had indeed distinct affinities with the Gastrodiineae, a subtribe in which it is now usual to include Gastrodia, R. Br., Didymoplexis, Griff., Leucolena, Ridl., and Auxopas, Scltr. The first two genera are represented in our own flora, the others are respectively endemic to the Malay Peninsula and Cameroons. Of these four, it is undoubtedly the most closely related to Gastrodia, R. Br. From this, how-ever, it differs in the remarkable inflorescence of numerous sessile flowers, united by their ovaries and crowded together in a bracteate capitulum; also in its unwinged column, and in its stigma which is situated on the face of the column near the apex, and not at the base as in Gastrodia, and likewise by its slenderly clawed, very movable and exceedingly fleshy labellum. Some of these differences appear to be of sufficient importance to warrant its exclusion from the Gastrodiinae. I must therefore regard it as the type of a new sub-tribe, belonging to the Polychondreae. The records, as shown by the material available, indicate extreme stress of environment followed by the most abject plant poverty and degradation."
FIELD NOTES.
GLOSSARY
Acurninat, tapering to a point.
Anther, the part of a flower containing pollen.
Awned, bristly or bearded.
Basal, relating to or forming the base of any part of a
flower or leaf
Bract, a leaf usually smaller than the true leaves of a
plant, from which a flower-stalk arises, or any modified leaf or
scale on a flower stalk or at the base of a flower.
Calli, glandular hairs or appendages.
Capsule, the ovary, or that part of an orchid below the
column where the seed is formed.
Channeled, grooved.
Cilia, hair-like formations, usually marginal, forming a
fringe.
Clavate, club-shaped, growing gradually thicker.
Claw, the slender stem-like formation sometimes present at
the base of the petals or lip of an orchid.
Column, that part of an orchid formed by the union of the
stamens and pistil.
Concave, hollow and curved or rounded.
Connate, united.
Cucullate, hooded.
Cuneate, wedge-shaped, with the point at the base.
Deciduous, falling off at a certain stage of growth.
Denticulate, notched in small tooth-like projections.
Dilated, expanding, or widening into lateral wing-like
appendages.
Disk, the whole surface of a part.
Dorsal, upper.
Elliptical, oblong with rounded ends.
Emarginate, with the margin notched.
Entire, applied to a part not having its margin
indented.
Epiphyte, a plant that grows on other plants without
deriving nourishment from them.
Falcate, bent like a sickle.
Fertilisation, the process by which in flowers the pollen
causes the rudiment of a seed to become fertile or
reproductive.
Flexuose, having alternate curves in opposite
directions.
Galea, the upper or helmet-shaped part of certain flowers.
Glabrous, having a smooth, shining surface without hairs.
Glandular, having a small prominence or gland.
Labellum, the lower petal of an orchid flower, often of a
curious shape, commonly called the lip.
Lamina, the blade of a leaf, or the broad expanded portion
of a petal or sepal.
Lanceolate, rather narrow and tapering to a point at the top
and some times at the base also.
Lateral, of or pertaining to the side of any part of a
plant.
Linear, narrow, same breadth throughout.
Lip, see Labellum.
Lobe, a rounded projection or division of a leaf or
petal.
Mucrone, a small, sharp point.
Orbicular, having a circular outline.
Ovary, that part below the column of an orchid containing
the rudimentary seeds.
Ovate, oval, egg shaped.
Panicle, a pyramid-shaped form of flower-cluster.
Pedicel, a stalk supporting one flower or fruit.
Peduncle, the stalk of a flower-cluster.
Peltate, having the stem or support attached to the lower
surface instead of the base or margin.
Perianth, of an orchid flower, the sepals and petals.
Petal, one of the inner leaves of a flower.
Pistil, the part of the flower that produces seed,
consisting of an ovary and a stigma which is commonly raised on an
elongated portion called the style.
Pollen, the mass of grain contained in the anther.
Pubescent, covered with fine, short hairs.
Raceme, a flower-cluster with an elongated axis or central
stem, Radical, proceeding directly from the root.
Reduplicate, redoubled.
Reflexed. bent back.
Rostellum, a small button-like projection on the column of
an orchid.
Saccate, pouched.
Saprophytic, feeding or growing upon decayed animal or
vegetable matter.
Scale, a small appendage like a rudimentary leaf.
Sessile, without a claw or stem.
Simple, without subdivisions, entire.
Sinuate, having the margin alternately curved inward and
outward.
Sinus, a depression between adjoining lobes.
Spatulate, shaped like a spatula or battledore, rounded,
with a long, narrow-linear base.
Style, see pistil.
Subulate, awl-shaped.
Terrestrial, existing on or in the earth.
Truncate, abruptly terminating as though cut off at one
end.
Tubercle, a small knob-like prominence.
Undulate, wavy.
Villose, covered with fine hairs.
Wing, the semi-transparent expansion usually produced, on
each side of the column of an orchid.
INDEX.
CALADENIA paniculata 55
CALADENIA Patersonii 46
CALADENIA Patersonii var. longicauda 47
CALADENIA pectinata 47
CALADENIA pellita 58
CALADENIA plicata 50
CALADENIA Preissii 56
CALADENIA Purdieana 55
CALADENIA radialis 48
CALADENIA reptans 56
CALADENIA reticulata 45
CALADENIA Roei 53
CALADENIA saccharata 57
CALADENIA sericea 58
CALADENIA serrata 41
CALADENIA tentaculata 46
CALADENIA tenuis 57
CALADENIA triangularis 52
CALADENIA unita 56
CALEANA 28
CALEANA nigrita 28
Canary Orchid 13
CALOCHILUS 38
CALOCHILUS Robertsonii 38
China Orchids 59
Clubbed Spider Orchid 49
Collection of Orchids 5
CORYANTHES 1
CORYSANTHES fimbriata 61
CORYSANTHES pruinosa 61
Cowslip Orchid 54
Crab-lipped Orchid 50
CRYPTOSYLIS 61
Custard Orchid 12
CYMBIDIUM CANALICULATUM 7
CYRTOSTYLIS 38
CYRTOSTYLIS reniformis 38
Damsel Orchid 17
DENDROBIUM DICUPHUM 7
Dingy Orchid 64
Dingo Orchid 17
ACIANTHUS 37
ACIANTHUS exsertus 37
ARETHUSEAE 7
Be1l Orchid 36
Bird Orchid 35
Blood Spider Orchid 45
Bull Orchid 35
Bunny Orchid 43
Butter Orchid 54
Butterfly Orchid 47
CALADENIA 42
CALADENIA aphylla 57
CALADENIA barbarossae 54
CALADENIA bicolor 49
CALADENIA Bryceana 53
CALADENIA Cairnsiana 44
CALADENIA carnea 57
CALADENIA carnea var. alba 57
CALADENIA clavigera 49
CALADENIA cristata 50
CALADENIA deformis 58
CALADENIA var. rhombiodi-formis 48
CALADENIA diacoidea 44
CALADENIA Dorrienii 45
CALADENIA Doutchiae 54
CALADENIA Drummondii 51
CALADENIA fimbriate 43
CALADENIA flava 54
CALADENIA gemmata 58
CALADENIA Gertrudae 59
CALADENIA hirta 52
CALADENIA ixioides 39
CALADENIA latifolia 56
CALADENIA lavendulaceae 52
CALADENIA lobata 47
CALADENIA longicauda 46
CALADENIA longiclavata 50
CALADENIA macrostylis 51
CALADENIA marginata 56
CALADENIA Menziesii 43
CALADENIA multiclava 44
CALADENIA nana 56
CALADENIA ochreata 56
Diuris 15
Diuris carinata 16
Diuris emarginata 17
Diuris filifolia 17
Diuris laevis 15
Diuris longifolia 17
Diuris pauciflora 18
Diuris Purdiei 16
Diuris setacea 16
Donkey's Ears Orchid 39
Doubletails 15
DRAKAEA 30
DRAKAEA elastica 30
DRAKAEA Fitzgeraldii 30
DRAKAEA glyptodon 31
DRAKAEA Jeanensis 31
Dwarf White Orchid 57
Elbow Orchid 29
Ename1 Orchids 59
EPIB1EMA 15
EPIB1EMA grandiflorum 15
ERIOCHILUS 39
ERIOCHILUS dilatatus 39
ERIOCHILUS fimbriatus 42
ERIOCHILUS multiflorus 40
ERIOCHILUS scaber 39
ERIOCHILUS tenuis 39
EULOPHIA VENOSA 7
Fertilisation of Orchids 4
Fly Orchid 42
GASTRODIA sesamoides 65
GOADBYELLA 21
GOADBYELLA gracilis 21
Glossary 67
GLOSSODIA 59
GLOSSODIA Brunonis 59
GLOSSODIA emarginata 60
GLOSSODIA intermedia 60
Gnome Orchid 33
Green Devils 33
Greenhoods 32
Green Orchid 48
Hammer Orchids 30
Hare Orchid 42
Helmet Orchid 36
Lady's Slipper Orchid 28
Leek Orchids 22
Lemon Orchid 13
Leopard Orchid 14
LEPTOCERAS 41
LEPTOCERAS fimbriatum 42
Localities 7
LYPERANTHUS 40
LYPERANTHUS nigricans 40
LYPERANTHUS serratus 41
MICROTIS 18
MICROTIS alba 19
MICROTIS atrata 20
MICROTIS gymnadenoides 20
MICROTIS media 19
MICROTIS orbicularis 20
MICROTIS parviflora 19
MICROTIS porrifolia 18
MICROTIS pulchella 20
MICROTIS truncata 19
Mignonette Orchids 18
Mouse Orchid 58
Naming and Classification 2
NEOTTIEAE 7
Orange Orchid 13
Pansy Orchid 17
Parson's Bands Orchids 39
Piano Orchid 22
Pink Enamel Orchid 60
Pink Fairies 56
Potatoe Orchid 40
PRASOPHYLLUM 22
PRASOPHYLLUM attenuatum 26
PRASOPHYLLUM australe 22
PRASOPHYLLUM cucullatum 28
PRASOPHYLLUM cyphochilum 25
PRASOPHYLLUM elatum 22
PRASOPHYLLUM ellipticum 24
PRASOPHYLLUM fimbria 24
PRASOPHYLLUM gibbosum 28
PRASOPHYLLUM hians 24
PRASOPHYLLUM lanceolatum 23
PRASOPHYLLUM macrostachyum 26
PRASOPHYLLUM Muelleri 23
PRASOPHYLLUM ovale 25
PRASOPHYLLUM ovale var. triglochin 25
PRASOPHYLLUM parvifolium 27
PRASOPHYLLUM plumforme 26
PRASOPHYLLUM regium 23
PRASOPHYLLUM triangulare 27
Praying Virgin 30
Press Orchids, To 6
Pronunciation of Orchid names 4
PTEROTYLIS , 31
PTEROTYLIS barbata 33
PTEROTYLIS constricta 34
PTEROTYLIS nana 33
PTEROTYLIS pyramidalis 33
PTEROTYLIS recurva 35
PTEROTYLIS reflexa 33
PTEROTYLIS robusta 33
PTEROTYLIS Rogersii 34
PTEROTYLIS rufa 36
PTEROTYLIS sargentii 36
Purple Enamel Orchid 59
Rabbit Orchid 43
Rattle Orchid 40
Red-lipped Spider Orchid 47
Reproduction of Orchids 4
RHIZANTHELLA Gardneri 65
Shell Orchid 33
Sly Orchid 33
Snail Orchid 33
Spelling of Names 3
SPICULAEA 29
SPICULAEA ciliata 29
Spotted Orchid 13
Stag's Head Orchid 44
Stanhopea 2
Structure of Orchids 4
Sun Orchids 9
THELYMITRA 9
THELYMITRA antennifera 13
THELYMITRA aristata 11
THELYMITRA campanulata 10
THELYMITRA canaliculata 10
THELYMITRA carnea 14
THELYMITRA crinita 10
THELYMITRA fasciculate 10
THELYMITRA flexuose 13
THELYMITRA fuscolutea 13
THELYMITRA longifolia 11
THELYMITRA Macmillanii 14
THELYMITRA mucida 11
THELYMITRA nuda 11
THELYMITRA pauciflora 11
THELYMITRA psammophila 13
THELYMITRA Sargentii 12
THELYMITRA spiralis 14
THELYMITRA stellata 12
THELYMITRA tigrina 12
THELYMITRA variegata 14
THELYMITRA villosa 12
Vanilla Orchid 13
Veined Caladenia 45
Wax Orchids 59
West Australian Types 7
White Spider Orchid 47
Yellow Spider Orchid 45
Zebra Orchid 44
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