About Pterostylis rubescens (D.L.Jones) G.N.Backh.
Pterostylis rubescens is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous herb that grows from an underground tuber. When it is not flowering, it produces a rosette of five to fifteen egg-shaped to heart-shaped leaves that lie flat against the ground. Each leaf measures 6–25 mm long and 3–18 mm wide. When flowering, plants produce between three and eighteen well-spaced flowers, each 10–18 mm long. The flowers grow on a thin, wiry flowering spike that reaches 150–600 mm in height, with three to six leaves wrapped around the spike. The flowers are almost spherical, green and white near the base and brownish near the tip, turning pinkish as they age. The dorsal sepal and petals are fused to form a hood called a "galea" that covers the column. The dorsal sepal curves forward near its top and has a rough tip. The lateral sepals are erect, held closely against the galea, and have narrow tips around 2 mm long that do not extend above the galea. A sinus between the bases of the lateral sepals bulges forward and has a small notch at its center. The labellum is approximately 4 mm long and 2 mm wide, and is not visible above the sinus. Flowering takes place from January to May. This orchid grows on slopes and ridges in open forest and woodland. It is widespread in northern Victoria, and on the central and southern tablelands of New South Wales.
