The hunt for Caleana major aka the Flying Duck Orchid

Searching for the Flying Duck Orchid

A couple of years ago I started becoming interested in orchids and whilst flicking through google images of orchids I came across several orchid flowers that looked like creatures. Amongst the most impressive of these was what is commonly called the Flying Duck Orchid (botanically known as Caleana major). I was blown away by how closely this orchid did actually resemble a flying duck but never looked into its origins. Then a few weeks ago I noticed the somebody had posted some pictures showing he had located some in Vaughan Springs which is about 50 minutes from my place. I contacted the photographer and he gave me some directions.

I set out towards Vaughan Springs and as the travel time started adding up I starting thinking that searching for such a small and elusive little orchid may be more difficult than I first thought. I turned off the freeway onto country roads that went through  Malmsbury. Then the sealed roads turned into dirt roads as I entered the bushland in Vaughan Springs. The directions I had been given were good but when I arrived at the intersection where I was told to stop I couldn't locate a walking track that was the next marker I had to locate. I knew I was roughly in the right area and there were about 3 hills around me. According to my information the orchid was on the peak of one of those hills. I started walking up one of them and shortly after I got to the peak I saw little patches of maroon plants. I had found them.

The Flying Duck Orchids were much smaller than I expected. The flower itself was only about 3 cm tall. The plant in its entirety was only roughly 20cm high. If I wasn't looking for it I may well have just walked right past it. The flower head didn't fail to impress. It was exactly as it appeared in the pictures. I took some snaps and set off to Daylesford to see the rest of the day out in the Wombat Hill Botanical gardens. Locating this plant was a hugely rewarding experience as I was half expecting to not even find it because of its elusive size. Even if I didn't locate it the sight of the other spring wildflowers would have made up for the disappointment of not finding this beautiful little plant.

Revisiting the Titan Arum (Corpse Flower) in the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne

Last year just before Christmas I visited the Botanical Gardens in Melbourne in an attempt to see the flower of the Amorphophallus titanum plant (see my blog entry http://aggregata.blogspot.com.au/2012/12/visit-to-see-corpse-flower-aka-titan.html). Unfortunately I was 2 days too early and it hadn't opened yet. I left for holidays a day after I visited the plant and it opened when I was away. I was quite disappointed as I really wanted to experience the 'perfume' of the Titan arum's flower which is supposed to smell like rotting flesh (which is where it gets its other common name 'corpse flower' from). Anyway I revisited the tropical greenhouse at the Botanical Gardens and saw the amazing leaf which is what grows after the flower dies back. Although it looks like an actual tree the plant you see in the picture below is actually one single leaf. I'm pretty sure this is called a compound leaf but it could be called a phyllode which is a modified leaf structure, I'm not quite sure. Apparently the leaf dies back each year and is replaced by a new one which grows from the plants corm. Seeing the huge leaf almost made up for the fact that I missed the plant in bloom. Titan arums are quite rare plants and until recently they had only been propagated in small numbers. The gardens have others that are being grown so hopefully in the future I will be able to experience one in flower.

Front and centre is the massive single leaf structure of the Amorphophallus titanum plant. The individual 'leaves' you see are actually called leaflets. Another 50cms of growth and it will be too tall for the greenhouse.

Thought I would include these two pictures of some orchids that were in the greenhouse also. Everyone loves orchids and there were heaps in flower inside the greenhouse.