Gastrodia sesamoides (Potato Orchid)
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Orchid Mackeral Track, Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park, NSW, Australia. possibly Gastrodia sesamoides
Photograph by Poyt448 Peter Woodard. Some rights reserved. (view image details)
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POTATO ORCHID FACTS |
Map is from The Atlas of Living Australia web site, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia License
Common Name
Potato Orchid
Other Names
Native Potato, Bell Orchid, Cinnamon Bells
Description
The Potato Orchid is a leafless saprophytic orchid. The flowers are bell shaped with the labellum or lip enclosed by the rest of the flower with the sepals and petals joined together forming a tube . The flowers are light brown or cinnamon coloured with cream coloured inside. the steam grow to about 75 cm tall and produce clusters of up to twenty flowers. Flowering is in late spring and early summer from about October to January varying according to range. The brown stem grows from a thick tuber. The fruit is an oval-shaped capsule growing to about 15 mm.
Habitat
open forest, woodland, heathland
Distribution
Gastrodia sesamoides is found in south east Queensland, eastern New South Wales, Victoria, south east South Australia and Tasmania.
Growth Characteristics
Height: 20cm - 75cm
Classification
| Class: | Liliopsida | | Order: | Asparagales | | Family: | Orchidaceae | | Genus: | Gastrodia | | Species: | sesamoides | | Common Name: | Potato Orchid |
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