Pterostylis longifolia, commonly known as the common leafy greenhood or tall greenhood, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to eastern Australia. Flowering plants have up to seven flowers which are green, partly transparent and which have a labellum which is pale green and hairy with a blackish central stripe. Non-flowering plants have a rosette of leaves but flowering plants lack the rosette, instead having five to eight stem leaves. A similar species, Pterostylis melagramma has paler green flowers which have a less hairy labellum.
Pterostylis longifolia, is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber. Non-flowering plants have a rosette of between three and six, linear to lance-shaped leaves, each leaf NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long and NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide. Flowering plants have up to seven green, partly transparent flowers on a flowering spike NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 high. The flowering spike has between five and eight stem leaves which are NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long and NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide. The flowers are NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long, NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide. The lateral sepals turn downwards and have a tapering tip, NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long, NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide. The labellum is about 5sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long, 3sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide, pale green and hairy with a dark stripe along its mid-line. Flowering occurs from April to September.[1] [2]
Pterostylis longifolia was first formally described in 1880 by Robert Brown and the description was published in Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen.[3] [4] The specific epithet (longifolia) is derived from the Latin words longus meaning "long"[5] and folia meaning "leaves".
Pterostylis longifolia occurs in New South Wales and southern Queensland on the coast and tablelands, growing in forest and coastal scrub.