About Pterostylis erecta T.E.Hunt
Pterostylis erecta, commonly known as the upright maroonhood, is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous herb that grows from an underground tuber. Flowering individuals produce a rosette of four to seven stalked, dark green, crinkled leaves. Each leaf measures 15 to 50 millimeters long and 10 to 25 millimeters wide. A single flower, 18 to 22 millimeters long and 5 to 7 millimeters wide, is carried on a flowering spike that reaches 150 to 350 millimeters in height. The flower color ranges from greenish to reddish brown or dark chocolate brown. The dorsal sepal and petals are fused together to form a hood, called a "galea", that covers the column. The dorsal sepal is longer than the petals, and ends in a sharp point. There is a wide gap between the petals and the lateral sepals. The sinus (the curved indentation) between the lateral sepals has a central notch and bulges slightly forward. The labellum is 6 to 7 millimeters long, about 2 millimeters wide, brown, blunt-tipped, and only just visible above the sinus. Flowering takes place from August to September. This orchid grows mainly in coastal and near-coastal forest, ranging from north of Moruya in New South Wales to south-eastern Queensland.
