Caladenia serotina

Description

Caladenia serotina is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single erect, hairy leaf, 100–200 mm (4–8 in) long and 4–20 mm (0.2–0.8 in) wide. Up to three flowers 80–120 mm (3–5 in) long, 80–100 mm (3–4 in) wide are borne on a stalk 250–600 mm (10–20 in) tall. The flowers have varying amounts of red and white or cream colours. The sepals and petals have long, thick, yellowish tips. The dorsal sepal is erect, 55–100 mm (2–4 in) long and 3–6 mm (0.1–0.2 in) wide and the lateral sepals have similar dimensions but spread widely and curve stiffly downwards near the tips. The petals are 45–80 mm (2–3 in) long and 2–4 mm (0.08–0.2 in) wide and arranged like the lateral sepals. The labellum is 16–30 mm (0.6–1 in) long, 10–14 mm (0.4–0.6 in) wide and white but with narrow red teeth up to 7 mm (0.3 in) long on the sides. The tip of the labellum is curled under and there are between four and eight rows of red, cream or white calli along the mid-line of the labellum. Flowering occurs from October to early January but is more prolific after fire the previous summer