Cinnamon Bells, Gastrodia sp (seasamoides?), or Potato Orchid, is a leafless, saprophytic or epiparasitic orchid. It grows in a variety of habitats and is fairly widespread throughout Victoria.
Being leafless, Cinnamon Bells does not use photosynthesis and chlorophyl to manufacture nutrient. It gets all its nutrition from decaying vegetation and fungi below the ground.
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Cinnamon Bells grows to about 50cm and flowers from October to January.
The name cinnamon bells is for the bell-shaped, cinnamon-coloured flowers. Oddly, some flowers do give off a cinnamon odour.
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Because the orchid grows from an underground tuber, it is sometimes referred to as the potato orchid. Members of the indigenous community used the tubers as a food source. Apparently, the location of tubers could be found by checking where Bandicoots had scratched the ground.
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Recently-named Golden Whistler Reserve is in McGlone Rd, between the Drouin Golf Club and the freeway. Trigger Plants are well evident and there are plenty of Beard Orchids showing in the reserve at present too but, not unusually, very few seem to have decided to flower so far this season – fingers crossed!
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Tip: if you Google the term ‘Golden Whistler Reserve’, you will get heaps of information and maps detailing the location and importance of this little environmental asset on the doorstep of Drouin.