Caladenia cleistantha facts for kids

Caladenia cleistantha is a special kind of plant. It belongs to the orchid family. You can only find it in the south-east part of Australia. This orchid grows in the ground. It usually has one hairy leaf. It also has one or two flowers that never fully open. These flowers are called cleistogamous. They pollinate themselves without opening up.

What it Looks Like

Caladenia cleistantha is a plant that grows from an underground tuber. It is a perennial herb, meaning it lives for many years. It is also deciduous, so its leaves fall off at certain times. It has one leaf that is a bit hairy. This leaf is long and thin, about 6 to 10 centimeters (2.4 to 3.9 inches) long. It is only 1 to 2 millimeters (0.04 to 0.08 inches) wide.

The plant usually has one flower. This flower grows on a thin stem that is 10 to 20 centimeters (3.9 to 7.9 inches) tall. The stem is slender and has reddish hairs. The flowers are about 7 millimeters (0.28 inches) long. They are reddish on the outside. They also have brown glands, which are like small bumps.

The sepals and petals of the flower are 6 to 7 millimeters (0.24 to 0.28 inches) long. They are 2 to 3 millimeters (0.08 to 0.12 inches) wide. They are shaped like an egg or a spear. Their outside is covered with brown glands, and the inside is whitish. The top sepal is shaped like a line or an oval. It completely wraps around the column, which is a central part of the orchid flower.

The labellum is a large, lip-like petal. It is broadly egg-shaped, 4 to 6 millimeters (0.16 to 0.24 inches) long. It is 5 to 6.5 millimeters (0.20 to 0.26 inches) wide. This labellum has three lobes. It is white with a few thin, dark red lines and a yellowish tip. The edges of the labellum lobes are slightly wavy. They do not have the small teeth that many other Caladenia orchids have. The side lobes are tightly wrapped around the column. There are two rows of short, yellowish bumps called calli in the middle of the labellum. The column itself is greenish with dark red stripes. This orchid flowers in August and September.

Naming the Orchid

This orchid was first officially described in 1991. A botanist named David L. Jones gave it the name Caladenia cleistantha. He published his description in a book called Australian Orchid Research. The first plant used to describe the species was found on Gabo Island.

The second part of its name, cleistantha, comes from ancient Greek words. Kleistos means "shut" or "closed". Anthos means "flower". This name refers to the flowers that stay closed.

Where it Lives

This Caladenia orchid grows among small shrubs. You can find it in heathlands and forests. It often grows in moss that covers rocks. It can also grow in soil that has laterite nodules, which are small, hard lumps of soil. You can find this orchid south of Ulladulla in New South Wales. It also grows east of Melbourne in Victoria.