Caladenia tessellata

Description

Caladenia tessellata, commonly known as the thick-lip spider-orchid, is a plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae and is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It is a ground orchid with a single hairy leaf and one or two yellowish-green flowers with dark red markings.Caladenia tessellata is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single, sparsely hairy, linear to lance-shaped leaf, 50–100 mm long and 4–9 mm wide. Up to three yellowish-green flowers with dark red marks are borne on a thin, wiry stalk 20–150 mm tall. The sepals and petals taper to fine, short, thread-like tips. The dorsal sepal is erect at its base, then curves forward and is 15–25 mm long and 2–3 mm wide. The lateral sepals are 15–25 mm long and 3–5 mm wide, curve downwards and are nearly parallel to each other. The petals are 15–25 mm long and about 2 mm wide and also curve downwards. The labellum is cream-coloured to green, often with a dark red tip and is heart-shaped, 8–9 mm long and wide. The sides of the labellum often have a few short, blunt teeth, the tip is curled under and there are four to six rows of shiny black calli in the lower central part. Flowering occurs in September and October.