Australian Native Plants

  Prasophyllum elatum (Tall Leek Orchid)


Prasophyllum elatum photo
Prasophyllum elatum, Strettle road reserve

Photograph by Gnangarra...commons.wikimedia.org. Some rights reserved.    (view image details)

Prasophyllum elatum photo
Prasophyllum elatum Flowers at Strettle Road Reserve Glen Forrest, Western Australia

Photograph by SatuSuro...commons.wikimedia.org. Some rights reserved.    (view image details)




TALL LEEK ORCHID FACTS

distribution map showing range of Prasophyllum elatum in Australia

Map is from The Atlas of Living Australia web site, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia License


Common Name
Tall Leek Orchid

Other Names
Piano Orchid

Description
The Tall Leek Orchid is a tall thick-stemmed terrestrial orchid growing to over a metre tall. The flower colour varies from green to brownish to purplish. Flowers are produced in spikes and are clustered close to the stem with up to sixty flowers per spike. The petals and sepals are about 1 cm long. Flowering is in spring from August to November (varies according to region). The leaves grow to over a metre long, and plants get the common name of Leek Orchid from the shape of the leaf which surrounds the stem. The plants grow from underground tubers

Habitat
grows around temporary swamps, grassland, heathland, scrubland and open forest

Distribution
Prasophyllum elatum is found in coastal areas around south Australia from south east Queensland, eastern New South Wales, southern Victoria, Tasmania, southern South Australia and south west of Western Australia up to around Shark Bay.

Growth Characteristics
Height: 150cm


Classification
Class:Liliopsida
Order:Asparagales
Family:Orchidaceae
Genus:Prasophyllum
Species:elatum
Common Name:Tall Leek Orchid