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Wispy sun orchid

Thelymitra sparsa

Wispy sun orchid
Photo: Brendan Costello, CC BY 4.0

Wispy sun orchid is a small tuberous orchid native to Tasmania, known from a few montane sites near Hobart. It is a rare wild species rather than a commonly grown plant, so care needs are best inferred from its native habitat of low scrub with grasses and sedges.

Family
Orchidaceae (Orchid family)
Grows as
Orchid
Light
Part shade, Full sun
Water
Keep the soil moist during active growth and let it dry off after flowering, as is typical for terrestrial tuberous orchids.
Soil
Free-draining, humus-rich soil or a gritty terrestrial orchid mix.
Temperature
Cool temperate conditions; tolerates frost in its native range.
How easy
Hard
Native range
Tasmania
Climate
temperate

About

Thelymitra sparsa, commonly called wispy sun orchid, is a species of orchid that is endemic to Tasmania. It has a single erect, fleshy leaf and up to six relatively small blue flowers with a few small darker spots. The flowers are self-pollinated and open only slowly on hot days. The species is restricted to a few restricted montane sites in south-eastern Tasmania.

Where it grows

Wispy sun orchid is restricted to a few montane sites on the Snug Plains and Wellington Range near Hobart where it grows in low scrub with grasses and sedges.

Other Thelymitra plants

Abrupt Sun Orchid · Wyong sun orchid · Gumland sun orchid · Bleak sun orchid · White sun orchid · Kath's sun orchid · Alpins striped sun orchid · Mountain sun orchid · Long-leaved sun orchid · Rabbit-eared sun orchid · Cleopatra's needles · Forest sun orchid

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Thelymitra sparsa 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.

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