Pterostylis despectans (Pterostylis despectans)
Description
Pterostylis despectans, is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber. It has a rosette of between six and ten leaves at the base of the flowering spike, each leaf 10–20 mm (0.4–0.8 in) long and 6–8 mm (0.2–0.3 in) wide. The leaves are often withered by the time of flowering. Up to six translucent flowers with green and brown markings and 30–38 mm (1.2–1.5 in) long, 6–8 mm (0.2–0.3 in) wide are borne on a flowering spike 30–50 mm (1–2 in) tall. Each flower is carried on the end of a long, thin stalk. Three or four papery bracts are wrapped around the flowering spike. The dorsal sepal and petals are joined to form a hood called the "galea" over the column with the dorsal sepal having a thread-like tip 10–13 mm (0.4–0.5 in) long. The lateral sepals are slightly wider than the galea and often touch the ground. They are shallowly dished, densely hairy on their outer edges and suddenly taper to a thread-like tip, 20–26 mm (0.8–1 in). The labellum is brown to green, thin and insect-like, about 5 mm (0.2 in) long and 2 mm (0.08 in) wide. The "head" end has two long bristles and there are up to 10 to 16 shorter bristles on the side. Flowering occurs from November to December.
Taxonomic tree
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Domain: Eukarya
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Kingdom: Plantae
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Phylum:
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Class: Liliopsida
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Order: Asparagales
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Family: Orchidaceae
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Genus: Pterostylis
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