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Rhizanthella gardneri
Also called Underground Orchid
Rhizanthella gardneri is an underground orchid of southwest Western Australia that spends its whole life cycle, including flowering, at or below the soil surface. It grows only in association with broom honeymyrtle and is rarely seen, so it is not a typical garden plant.
Rhizanthella gardneri, commonly known as western underground orchid, is a species of flowering plant in the orchid family and is endemic to the southwest of Western Australia. It is a herb that spends its entire life cycle, including flowering, at or below the soil surface. A head of up to 100 small reddish to cream-coloured, inward facing flowers surrounded by large, cream-coloured bracts with a horizontal rhizome is produced between May and July.
Rhizanthella gardneri is only known from the Avon Wheatbelt biogeographic region of Western Australia, where it grows in association with broom honeymyrtle (Melaleuca uncinata), between Corrigin and Babakin.
South coast underground orchid · Rhizanthella omissa · Eastern underground orchid · Rhizanthella speciosa · Underground orchids
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Rhizanthella gardneri by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
