Climbing hyacinth-orchid

Description

Dipodium pictum, commonly known as brittle climbing-orchid or climbing hyacinth-orchid, is an orchid species that is native to Malesia (including Indonesia and New Guinea) and the Cape York Peninsula in Australia. Dipodium pictum is a slender vine with leaves that are arranged in a single plane These have overlapping bases and are about 30 to 40 cm long and 2 to 3 cm wide. The flowers are about 5 cm in diameter and have maroon spots. The species was formally described in 1849 in The Journal of the Horticultural Society of London by English botanist John Lindley who gave it the name Wailesia picta. It was transferred to the genus Dipodium by German botanist Heinrich Gustav Reichenbach in 1862. In Australia it is found within or on the edge of rainforest, often near watercourses, at altitudes ranging from 200 to 400 metres. Only four specimens have been recorded in Australia; from Iron Range National Park and a timber reserve in the McIlwraith Range on the Cape York Peninsula. n Australia, the species is listed as "endangered" under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act as well as Queensland's Nature Conservation Act. Dipodium, commonly known as hyacinth orchids, is a genus of about forty species of orchids native to tropical, subtropical and temperate regions of south-east Asia, New Guinea, the Pacific Islands and Australia. It includes both terrestrial and climbing species, some with leaves and some leafless, but all with large, often colourful flowers on tall flowering stems. It is the only genus of its alliance, Dipodium. Orchids in the genus Dipodium are perennial, terrestrial herbs or climbers/epiphytes. Many species, particularly in eastern Australia are leafless mycoheterotrophs. Others have medium-sized to very large leaves that are parallel-veined and have entire margins. The flowers are arranged in a raceme with very few or up to fifty large, often colourful flowers. These may be fragrant or odourless, are white, pink, purple, yellow or green, often with spots or blotches. The sepals and petals are free from and similar to each other. The labellum projects forwards and has three lobes with a central band of colourful hairs. Each flower has two pollinia that are supported on two stipes. Dehiscent capsules, produced after flowering, hold the seed which is released when the capsule splits longitudinally along six seams. Between 30 and 500 seeds are produced per capsule.