Prasophyllum anticum, commonly known as the Pretty Hill leek orchid, is a species of orchid endemic to Victoria. It has a single tubular, dark green leaf and between ten and twenty five scented, greenish-brown flowers and is only known from a small area in the south-west of the state.
Prasophyllum anticum is a terrestrial, perennial, deciduous, herb with an underground tuber and a single tube-shaped leaf up to 250sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long and NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 wide at the base. Between ten and twenty five scented, greenish-brown flowers are crowded along a flowering spike about NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long. As with others in the genus, the flowers are inverted so that the labellum is above the column rather than below it. The dorsal sepal is egg-shaped to lance-shaped and about the same size as the lateral sepals which are erect and spread widely apart from each other. The petals are oblong to lance-shaped and about 7sigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long. The labellum is egg-shaped, NaNsigfig=1NaNsigfig=1 long, turns upwards at about 90° and has slightly wavy edges. Flowering occurs from October to November.[1]
Prasophyllum anticum was first formally described in 2006 by David Jones and Dean Rouse from a specimen collected at the Pretty Hill Flora Reserve, near Orford and the description was published in Australian Orchid Research.[2] The specific epithet (anticum) is a Latin word meaning "foremost" or "in front"[3] in reference to the earlier flowering period of this species.[4]
The Pretty Hill leek orchid grows in grassland and is only known from the type location.