Microtis alba

Microtis alba, commonly known as the white mignonette orchid[2] or slender onion-orchid,[3] is a species of orchid endemic to the south-west of Western Australia. It has a single hollow, onion-like leaf and up to sixty small, green and white flowers with a strong musky fragrance. It is much more common after a fire the previous summer than in unburned country.

White mignonette orchid
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoideae
Tribe: Diurideae
Genus: Microtis
Species:
M. alba
Binomial name
Microtis alba
Synonyms[1]

Description

Microtis alba is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single erect, smooth, tubular leaf 100–500 mm (4–20 in) long and 7–10 mm (0.3–0.4 in) wide. Between ten and sixty green and white flowers are arranged along a flowering stem 200–800 mm (8–30 in) tall. The flowers have a strong musky fragrance, lean downwards and are 5–8 mm (0.2–0.3 in) long and 3–4 mm (0.1–0.2 in) wide. The dorsal sepal is 4–5 mm (0.16–0.20 in) long, about 2 mm (0.08 in) wide and forms a hood over the column. The lateral sepals are 3–4 mm (0.1–0.2 in) long, about 1 mm (0.04 in) wide with their tips rolled under. The petals are 3–4 mm (0.1–0.2 in) long, about 1 mm (0.04 in) wide and often curved. The labellum is oblong to wedge-shaped, 4–7 mm (0.2–0.3 in) long, 1–2 mm (0.04–0.08 in) wide with wrinkled edges and a notched tip. Flowering occurs from October to January but much more prolifically after fire the previous summer.[2][3][4]

Taxonomy and naming

Microtis alba was first formally described by Robert Brown in 1810 and the description was published in Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen.[5][6] The specific epithet (alba) is a Latin word meaning "white".[7]

Distribution and habitat

The white mignonette orchid grows in a range of habitats from seasonally wet flats to forest and occurs between Dongara and Israelite Bay.[2][3][4]

Conservation

Microtis alba is classified as "not threatened" by the Western Australian Government Department of Parks and Wildlife.[8]

References
  1. "Microtis alba". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  2. Brown, Andrew; Dundas, Pat; Dixon, Kingsley; Hopper, Stephen (2008). Orchids of Western Australia. Crawley, Western Australia: University of Western Australia Press. p. 284. ISBN 9780980296457.
  3. Jones, David L. (2006). A complete guide to native orchids of Australia including the island territories. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: New Holland. p. 222. ISBN 1877069124.
  4. Hoffman, Noel; Brown, Andrew (2011). Orchids of South-West Australia (3rd ed.). Gooseberry Hill: Noel Hoffman. p. 337. ISBN 9780646562322.
  5. "Microtis alba". APNI. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  6. Brown, Robert (1810). Prodromus florae Novae Hollandiae. London. p. 321. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  7. Brown, Roland Wilbur (1956). The Composition of Scientific Words. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 856.
  8. "Microtis alba". FloraBase. Western Australian Government Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
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