Calanthe

The Christmas orchid Calanthe australasica forms colonies in the shade of the forest. It flowers in December and January, but only if the season has been moist enough. If the flowers are pollinated (probably by a moth) the seedpods develop slowly over several months and don't release their dust-like seeds until September of the following year.

Seedlings seem to be most frequent around the parent plants, as in the bottom photo. This may have something to do with the fungus that the orchid roots provide a home for. Seedlings are easily transplanted to new sites, but are vulnerable to beings scratched up by lyrebirds and brush turkeys. These birds can be outwitted by wedging the seedlings between heavy bits of timber or between stones.

Unfortunately, Christmas orchids in flower also attract dishonest gardeners who seem unable to resist digging them up.

If they are protected from these two problems, Christmas orchids form clumps that, from their size and rate of growth, appear to persist for more than a hundred years.

Christmas orchids are one of the easiest orchids to raise by the "asymbiotic method". Seedlings raised by this method can be grown with wild ones to ensure that they are invaded by the symbiotic fungi that they live with.