Orthochilus foliosus purple lip

The purple lip of Orthochilus foliosus closes around the flower centre in picture. This is achieved via the two lateral lip lobes that are erect and folding in. The median lobe below protrudes forward. Sepal and petal colouring, pale lime green, contrasts well against the lip. The lip in this species has no spur at the back.

The column, housing the vital reproductive parts, can be glimpsed inside. The anther containing the pollinia is above, the stigma in a cavity below (Pooley, 1998).