Brown lip leek orchid facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Brown lip leek orchid |
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The brown lip leek orchid (scientific name: Prasophyllum spadiceum) is a special type of orchid. It grows only in southern Australia. This orchid has a single leaf shaped like a tube. It can have up to thirty flowers that are pale green, brown, and white. Each flower has a whitish part called a labellum.
This plant was only recently given its own name. Before, people thought it was the same as another orchid, P. fitzgeraldii. But scientists found that the brown lip leek orchid has smaller, paler flowers. Its labellum is whiter, and it has a brown callus (a raised area). You can find this orchid in the south-east of South Australia. It also grows in just one spot in western Victoria.
What Does It Look Like?
The brown lip leek orchid is a plant that lives for many years. It grows from an underground tuber, which is like a small storage organ. It has one shiny, pale green leaf that looks like a tube. This leaf can be about 150 to 400 mm (6 to 16 inches) long. It is about 2 to 4 mm (0.08 to 0.16 inches) wide at its base.
This orchid grows a flowering stem that can be 200 to 400 mm (8 to 16 inches) tall. Along this stem, there are usually ten to thirty flowers. These flowers are often green and have a pleasant smell. Each flower is about 7 to 9 mm (0.28 to 0.35 inches) long and 6 to 8 mm (0.24 to 0.31 inches) wide.
Like other orchids in its group, the flowers of the brown lip leek orchid are upside down. This means the labellum (a special petal) is above the column (the part that holds the pollen) instead of below it.
The top petal, called the dorsal sepal, is shaped like a spear or a narrow egg. It is about 4 to 6 mm (0.16 to 0.24 inches) long. The side petals, called lateral sepals, are also egg-shaped or spear-shaped. They are about 4 to 6 mm (0.16 to 0.24 inches) long and spread out a little.
The main petals are brown with whitish edges. They are about 5 to 6 mm (0.20 to 0.24 inches) long. The labellum is whitish and shaped like an oblong or an egg. It is about 5 to 6 mm (0.20 to 0.24 inches) long and 4 to 5 mm (0.16 to 0.20 inches) wide. About halfway along, the labellum bends sharply upwards at a 90-degree angle. The edges of this upturned part are wavy or crinkled.
In the middle of the labellum, there is a coffee-coloured callus. This callus is shaped like a spear or an egg and almost reaches the tip of the labellum. These orchids usually bloom in October.
How It Was Named
The brown lip leek orchid was officially named Prasophyllum spadiceum in 2017. Two botanists, David Jones and Robert Bates, described it. Their description was published in a magazine called Australian Orchid Review. They studied a plant found in the Gum Lagoon Conservation Park.
The second part of its scientific name, spadiceum, comes from a Latin word. It means "reddish-brown." This name refers to the coffee-coloured callus found on the orchid's labellum.
Where It Lives
The brown lip leek orchid mostly grows in damp woodlands where there are many heath plants. You can find it in the middle of the south-east part of South Australia. It also grows in just one small area near Apsley in far western Victoria. In that one spot in Victoria, there are only about 100 plants, making it quite rare.
