Pterostylis furcata explained

Pterostylis furcata, commonly known as the forked greenhood, is a species of orchid endemic to Tasmania. Flowering plants have a rosette of bright green leaves at the base of the flowering stem and a single green and white flower with the tip of the dorsal sepal pointing above the horizontal.

Description

Pterostylis furcata is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber. Flowering plants have a rosette of bright green leaves loosely arranged around the base of the flowering stem, each leaf NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long and NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide. A single green and white flower NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long and NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide is borne on a spike NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 high. The dorsal sepal and petals are fused, forming a hood or "galea" over the column but the dorsal sepal is longer than the petals, has a sharp point on its end and points slightly upwards. There is a wide gap between the lateral sepals and the galea, and there is a curved, deeply notched sinus between them. The labellum is NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long, about 3sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide, dark-coloured, curved and protrudes above the sinus. Flowering occurs from November to February.[1]

Taxonomy and naming

Pterostylis furcata was first formally described in 1840 by John Lindley from a specimen collected in Tasmania and the description was published in The Genera and Species of Orchidaceous Plants.[2] [3] The specific epithet (furcata) is a Latin word meaning "forked".[4]

Distribution and habitat

The forked greenhood grows in wet forest and in montane grassland in Tasmania.[5]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Jones. David L.. A complete guide to native orchids of Australia including the island territories. 2006. New Holland. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.. 978-1877069123. 307.
  2. Web site: Pterostylis furcata. APNI. 16 May 2017.
  3. Book: Lindley. John. The Genera and Species of Orchidaceous Plants. 1840. Ridgways. London. 390. 16 May 2017.
  4. Book: Brown. Roland Wilbur. The Composition of Scientific Words. 1956. Smithsonian Institution Press. Washington, D.C.. 345.
  5. Jones. David L.. Contributions to the Orchidology of Tasmania. Australian Orchid Research. 1998. 3. 144–145.