Plectorrhiza erecta , commonly known as the upright tangle orchid,[1] is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid that has many coarse, cord-like roots, many bright green leaves and up to five yellowish orange, cup-shaped flowers with purplish blotches. It grows close to the ground on fibrous barked plants and only occurs on Lord Howe Island.
Plectorrhiza erecta is an erect epiphytic or lithophytic herb with many long, tangled, cord-like aerial roots at the base of a stem NaNmm long. There are many bright green, more or less fleshy, leathery, narrow egg-shaped to oblong leaves NaNmm long and NaNmm wide. Between two and five yellowish orange flowers with purplish brown blotches, NaNmm long and NaNmm wide are borne on a flowering stem NaNmm long. The sepals and petals are fleshy, NaNmm long, about 1mm wide and curved inwards. The labellum is white to cream-coloured, about 6mm long, 4mm wide with hairy side lobes and a blunt middle lobe. The middle lobe has a straight spur about 2mm long and the column is purple. Flowering occurs from October to December.[2] [3]
The upright tangle orchid was first described in 1878 by Robert D. FitzGerald who gave it the name Cleisostoma erectum and published the description in his book Australian Orchids.[4] In 1967 Alick Dockrill changed the name to Plectorrhiza erecta.[5] The specific epithet (erecta) is a Latin word meaning "upright".[6]
Plectorrhiza erecta grows near the ground on the fibrous bark of trees and shrubs with its roots spreading over the bark, leaf litter and nearby rocks. It is found near the coast and at altitudes of up to 530m (1,740feet) on Lord Howe Island.