About Pterostylis smaragdyna D.L.Jones & M.A.Clem.
Pterostylis smaragdyna D.L.Jones & M.A.Clem. (also referred to as Pterostylis longifolia, commonly known as the emerald-lip leafy greenhood) is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous herb that grows from an underground tuber. Non-flowering individuals produce a rosette of three to five lance-shaped leaves, with each leaf measuring 10–45 mm (0.4–2 in) long and 4–8 mm (0.2–0.3 in) wide. Flowering plants bear up to ten translucent green flowers with darker green markings on an upright flowering spike that is 200–500 mm (8–20 in) high. The flowering spike holds five to seven linear to lance-shaped stem leaves, which are 20–100 mm (0.8–4 in) long and 3–5 mm (0.1–0.2 in) wide. The dorsal sepal and petals are fused together to form a hood, called a "galea", that covers the column, and the dorsal sepal has a short point at its tip. The lateral sepals face downwards, measure 16–19 mm (0.6–0.7 in) long and 7–8 mm (0.28–0.31 in) wide, and are joined for most of their length. The labellum is insect-shaped, 7–8 mm (0.28–0.31 in) long, about 4 mm (0.2 in) wide, and is pale green with a dark green stripe running down its center and a dark green mound at its "head" end. Flowering takes place from June to August. This orchid grows in dry forest and woodland habitats, and is distributed in the southeastern corner of New South Wales, central Victoria including the outer suburbs of Melbourne, and southeastern South Australia.
