Australian Tropical Rainforest Orchids

Leaf presence

A leaf is defined as an expanded organ, usually green, borne on the stem of a plant. Typically a leaf consists of an expanded blade (lamina) and a supporting stalk (petiole) but in many orchids the stalk is absent and the base of the leaf extends around the stem as a sheath. Small leaves are easily confused with bracts. In this key a bract is regarded as a reduced modified leaf associated either with an individual flower (fertile or floral bract) or arising on the peduncle (sterile bract).


Present on fertile plant

Absent on fertile plant

Present on sterile plant