Aporostylis bifolia (Aporostylis bifolia)
Description
The orchid Aporostylis bifolia is the only species in the genus Aporostylis . The small, herbaceous plants are about five to twenty inches tall. They are distributed in New Zealand. Aporostylis bifolia forms roundish to conical, subterranean tubers ; new tubers are formed at some distance from the plant. The slender sprout grows upright, it is green to reddish, glandular hairy and below the leaves of Niederbl�tternenvelops. Close to the ground, two leaves are sitting close together. If the plants grow in the midst of higher vegetation, the stalk can also be a little bit stretched and the two leaves are a bit further apart. The leaves are variably shaped, even within a population, the leaf shape can range from lanceolate to broad-oval, the end is pointed. The leaf blade is often reddish or brownish spotted, more or less glandular hairy and ciliate on the edge. The lower leaf is about 10 to 15 inches long, the upper is smaller. The sprout carries a single flower above the leaves . Rarely, two flowers per shoot occur. The flowers measure about 2.5 centimeters and are resupinated , white or pink colored. The bract partially envelops the ovary . The outer sides of the sepals and the ovaries are studded with glandular hair. The upper sepal is broad-lanceolate, concave, pointed or blunt ending. The lateral sepals are narrower and pointed, the petals narrower, shorter and also pointed. The oval lip is undivided and sitting, near the base sit two yellow bars. The lip and the base of the columnare often spotted dark. The column is oblong and slightly curved, the sides pulled out as wings or narrow lobes. It carries at the top of the two-chambered stamen with two granular pollinia .
Taxonomic tree
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Domain: Eukarya
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Kingdom: Plantae
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Phylum:
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Class: Liliopsida
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Order: Asparagales
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Family: Orchidaceae
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Genus: Aporostylis
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