Potato orchids | |
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Gastrodia elata in Fukushima Prefecture | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Monocots |
Order: | Asparagales |
Family: | Orchidaceae |
Subfamily: | Epidendroideae |
Tribe: | Gastrodieae |
Genus: | Gastrodia R.Br.[1] |
Synonyms[1] | |
Gastrodia, commonly known as potato orchids,[2] is a genus of terrestrial leafless orchids in the family Orchidaceae, about ninety of which have been described. Orchids in this genus have fleshy, upright stems and small to medium-sized resupinate flowers with narrow sepals and petals. They are native to Asia (China, the Russian Far East, Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, the Indian Subcontinent), Australia, New Zealand, central Africa, and various islands of the Indian and Pacific Oceans.[1]