Prasophyllum ovale

Prasophyllum ovale, commonly known as the little leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It is a small leek orchid with a single smooth, tubular leaf and up to twenty or more white, green and brown flowers with the labellum only slightly upturned.

Little leek orchid
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Subtribe: Prasophyllinae
Genus: Prasophyllum
Species:
P. ovale
Binomial name
Prasophyllum ovale

Description

Prasophyllum ovale is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single smooth green, tube-shaped leaf 150–300 mm (6–10 in) long and 2–3 mm (0.08–0.1 in) in diameter. Between eight and twenty or more flowers are arranged on a flowering stem 200–400 mm (8–20 in) tall. The flowers are white, green and brown, about 8 mm (0.3 in) long and wide. As with others in the genus, the flowers are inverted so that the labellum is above the column rather than below it. The sepals and petals turn forwards and the lateral sepals are free from each other. The labellum is turned only slightly upwards and has a slightly frilly edge. Flowering occurs from September to October.[2][3]

Taxonomy and naming

The little leek orchid was first formally described in 1840 by John Lindley and the description was published in A Sketch of the Vegetation of the Swan River Colony.[1] The specific epithet (ovale) is a Latin word meaning "oval",[4] referring to the shape of the labellum.[3]

Distribution and habitat

The little leek orchid grows in woodland between New Norcia and Mount Barker in the Avon Wheatbelt, Esperance Plains, Jarrah Forest and Swan Coastal Plain biogeographic regions.[2][3][5]

Conservation

Prasophyllum ovale is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.[5]

References
  1. "Prasophyllum ovale". APNI. Retrieved 4 December 2017.
  2. Hoffman, Noel; Brown, Andrew (2011). Orchids of South-West Australia (3rd ed.). Gooseberry Hill: Noel Hoffman. p. 360. ISBN 9780646562322.
  3. Brown, Andrew; Dundas, Pat; Dixon, Kingsley; Hopper, Stephen (2008). Orchids of Western Australia. Crawley, Western Australia: University of Western Australia Press. p. 328. ISBN 9780980296457.
  4. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 296.
  5. "Prasophyllum ovale". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.
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