Plants of
South Australia
Thelymitra lucida
Orchidaceae
Glistening Sun-orchid,
Plum Sun-orchid,
Horay Sun-orchid
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Regional Species Conservation Assessments per IBRA subregion.
Least concern
Near threatened
Rare
Vulnerable
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Critically endangered
Extinct
Data deficient
Adelaide
Arkaroola
Ceduna
Coober Pedy
Hawker
Innamincka
Marla
Marree
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Oodnadatta
Renmark
Wudinna
Keith
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Common names

Glistening Sun-orchid

Plum Sun-orchid

Horay Sun-orchid

Etymology

Thelymitra from Greek 'thelys' meaning a bishop and 'mitra' meaning a headwear, hat, hence a bishop’s mitre, referring to the sometimes plumed or decorated wings of the column, which is usually produced behind and over the anther in a hood-like projection. Lucida from the Latin 'lucidus' meaning bright or glittering, referring to the glistening bloom on the post-anther lobe of the column.

Distribution and status

Found in the lower South-east in South Australia, growing in or near sedge swamps on moist or peaty soils, sometime in standing water at flowering time. Also found in Victoria and Tasmania. Native. Very rare in South Australia. Very rare in the other states.
Herbarium regions: Kangaroo Island, South Eastern
NRM regions: Kangaroo Island, South East
AVH map: SA distribution map (external link)

Plant description

Terrestrial orchid with linear to linear-lanceolate leaves to 35 cm long and 12 mm wide, erect, fleshy, dark green with a purplish baes. Flowering spike straight, green to purplish, to 55 cm high with 1-7 dark blue flowers, petals and labellum often darker than the sepals. Flowering between November and December. This species is distinguished from the similar species Thelymitra mucida, by the thin, glistening layer on the post-anther lobe rather than copious thick, sticky, hoary secretion in T. mucida. Fruits are brown papery obovoid capsule to 15 mm long and 6 mm wide, ribbed. Seeds are very small brown ellipsoid seed with a translucent brown mesh-like covering.

Seed collection and propagation

Collect seeds between December and February. Collect fat capsules as they start to dry and turn brown. Pods will split and release the seeds quickly and will require monitoring. To increase the chances of collecting mature pods, it is recommended that a small breathable bag (ie. Organza bags) be used to enclose the developing capsules. Place the capsules in a container that will hold fine seeds and leave to dry for a few weeks or until the capsule split. Then carefully hold the capsule and tap it gently to release the seeds. Store the seeds with a desiccant such as dried silica beads or dry rice, in an air tight container in a cool and dry place, refrigerator or in liquid nitrogen. For the NVC South East Orchid Project two populations consisting of more than 320 individuals in total were recorded from the Nangwarry and Wandillo Nature Forest Reserves. Approximately 3,320,000 seeds (4.21 g) were banked from these two populations. Seed viability for the two collections was 77% to 89%. Seed germination for Thelymitra species is difficult in the absence of symbiotic mycorrhizal fungi.

Seeds stored:
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LocationNo. of seeds
(weight grams)
Number
of plants
Date
collected
Collection number
Collection location
Date
stored
% ViabilityStorage
temperature
BGA73,000 (0.057 g)12-Dec-2013T.Horn
South Eastern
1-Nov-2017N/C-80°C
Location: BGA — the seeds are stored at the Adelaide Botanic Gardens, MSB — the seeds are stored at the Millennium Seed Bank, Kew, England.
Number of plants: This is the number of plants from which the seeds were collected.
Collection location: The Herbarium of South Australia's region name.
% Viability: Percentage of filled healthy seeds determined by a cut test or x-ray.