Eriochilus
(pronounced: er-ee-oh-KYE-luss)
Classification
Diurideae subtribe Caladeniinae
Overview
Terrestrials arising from tubers. Leaves solitary, basal, appearing during or after flowering. Inflorescences erect pedunculate few-flowered racemes. Flowers resupinate. Sepals and petal free, spreading, the dorsal sepal forming a hood over the column, the lateral sepals much larger than the other segments. Lip obscurely three-lobed, strongly recurved, wooly pubescent. Column stout, somewhat club-shaped, without wings or foot; pollinia 8, naked.
Etymology
From the Greek erion, meaning wool, and cheilos, meaning lip, referring to the wooly lip.
Distribution
A genus of about eight species endemic to Australia.
Care and Culture Card
See basic growing conditions and care information below.
Grow plants of Eriochilus in pots of sandy loam. Provide bright light and intermediate temperatures. During active growth water regularly. After flowering reduce watering to a minimal maintenance level. Plants of Eriochilus go completely dormant after flowering.
Literature
Backhouse, G. and J. Jeanes 1995. The orchids of Victoria. Melbourne Univ. Press, Carlton.
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