Prasophyllum graniticola facts for kids

Prasophyllum graniticola is a special type of orchid that only grows in New South Wales, Australia. It's sometimes called a "leek orchid" because its leaf looks a bit like a leek. This plant has one shiny, dark green leaf shaped like a tube. It also grows up to 25 sweet-smelling flowers that are greenish, brownish, and white. This rare orchid is only found in two small areas in the Northern Tablelands.

About the Leek Orchid

Prasophyllum graniticola is a plant that grows on land, not in water. It is a perennial plant, which means it lives for more than two years. It's also a deciduous plant, so its leaves fall off at certain times of the year. This orchid is a herb, meaning it has soft stems instead of woody ones.

What it Looks Like

Underground, this orchid has a tuber, which is like a small, swollen root that stores food. Above ground, it has one shiny, dark green leaf shaped like a tube. This leaf can be from 300 to 550 millimeters (about 12 to 22 inches) long and 3 to 5 millimeters (about 0.1 to 0.2 inches) wide. The bottom part of the leaf is often purplish.

The Flowers

The flowers grow on a tall stem called a flowering spike. This spike can be 100 to 200 millimeters (about 4 to 8 inches) long, and the whole plant can reach up to 600 millimeters (about 24 inches) tall. There are usually 10 to 25 flowers packed closely together on the spike. These flowers have a lovely sweet smell and are greenish to brownish in color.

Like other orchids in its group, the flowers of Prasophyllum graniticola are unusual because they are upside down! This means the labellum (a special lip-like petal) is above the column (the part that holds the pollen) instead of below it.

Each flower has different parts:

• The dorsal sepal is the top part of the flower. It's shaped like an egg or a spear, about 8 to 10 millimeters (0.3 to 0.4 inches) long and 4 millimeters (0.16 inches) wide. It has a pointed tip and three to five darker lines.
• The lateral sepals are the two side parts. They are long and narrow, about 8 to 10 millimeters (0.3 to 0.4 inches) long and 2 millimeters (0.08 inches) wide. They spread wide apart from each other.
• The petals are white with a red line down the middle. They are also long and narrow, about 8 to 10 millimeters (0.3 to 0.4 inches) long and 2 millimeters (0.08 inches) wide.
• The labellum is white and shaped like an oblong or spear. It's about 8.5 to 10.5 millimeters (0.33 to 0.41 inches) long and 4 millimeters (0.16 inches) wide. This part sharply bends upwards by more than 90 degrees. In the middle of the labellum, there's a yellow, egg-shaped or wedge-shaped callus with a dark green base. This callus extends far past the bend.

This orchid usually blooms between late November and late December.

Naming the Orchid

Prasophyllum graniticola was officially named in 2018. Two botanists, David Jones and Lachlan Copeland, described it for the first time. They found a sample of the plant near a place called Ebor. Their description was then published in a magazine called Australian Orchid Review.

What the Name Means

The second part of its scientific name, graniticola, tells us something important about the plant. It comes from two Latin words:

• Granum means "granite."
• The ending -cola means "dweller" or "one who lives in."

So, graniticola means "granite dweller." This name was chosen because this orchid prefers to grow in areas with granite rocks. This is different from a similar orchid, P. basalticum, which prefers to grow in basaltic soils (soil from volcanic rock).

Where it Lives

This special leek orchid grows among grasses, bracken fern, and spiny-head mat-rush. It lives in woodlands at high places, around 1200 meters (about 3,900 feet) above sea level. It is very rare and is only known to exist in two small areas near Ebor in New South Wales.