Malaxis unifolia

Malaxis unifolia
1829 illustration

Secure  (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Epidendroideae
Genus: Malaxis
Species:
M. unifolia
Binomial name
Malaxis unifolia
Michx. 1803
Synonyms
  • Orchis ophioglossoides Walter
  • Malaxis ophioglossoides Muhl. ex Willd.
  • Achroanthes unifolia (Michx.) Raf.
  • Microstylis ophioglossoides (Muhl. ex Willd.) Nutt. ex Eaton
  • Prescottia ophioglossoides (Muhl. ex Willd.) Spreng.
  • Microstylis ophioglossoides var. mexicana Lindl.
  • Achroanthes laxiflora Raf.
  • Achroanthes obtusifolia Raf.
  • Malaxis thlaspiformis A.Rich. & Galeotti
  • Microstylis unifolia (Michx.) Britton, Sterns & Poggenb.
  • Microstylis grisebachiana Fawc. & Rendle
  • Malaxis grisebachiana (Fawc. & Rendle) Fawc. & Rendle
  • Malaxis unifolia f. bifolia Mousley
  • Malaxis unifolia f. variegata Mousley
  • Malaxis amplexicolumna E.W.Greenw. & R.Gonzál

Malaxis unifolia, or the green adder's-mouth orchid, is a species of orchid occurring from eastern and central Canada (Newfoundland to Manitoba), the central and eastern United States (Maine to Florida, west as far as Minnesota, eastern Kansas, and eastern Texas), Mexico, Central America and the Greater Antilles (Cuba, Jamaica, Dominican Republic).

Malaxis unifolia generally has only one leaf and rarely two. Flowers have a green colour, in a raceme. It often resemble an umbel at first before it elongates.