Calanthe plantaginea Lindl. 1833 SUBGENUS Calanthe SECTION Vernae
Photo by © Jeewan Singh Jalal & J. Jayanthi and AN ANNOTATED CHECKLIST OF THE ORCHIDS OF WESTERN HIMALAYA, INDIA LANKESTERIANA 15(1): 7—50. 2015
Photo by © Lourens Grobler.
LATE 
EARLY
Common Name The Plantago-Like Calanthe [refers to the leaves] - In China Che Qian Xia Ji Lan
Flower Size 1.2 to 1.6" [3 to 4 cm]
Found in western Himalayas, eastern Himalayas, Nepal, Bhutan, Sikkim and Yunnan and Xizang Province of China in evergrgeen broad-leaved forests at elevations of 1800 to 2500 meters as a medium sized, cool to cold growing terrestrial with conical pseudobulbs carrying 3, elliptic-ovate, plicate, prominently ridged, acute, narrowing below into the petiolate bsae leaves that arise with the leaves in late winter and early spring on a lateral, laxly to subdensely many flowered, ridged, puberulent, 10 to 14.4" [25 to 36 cm] long, racemose inflorescence with persistent, lanceolate floral bracts and carrying fragrant, pendant flowers
CAUTION There are 2 completely different orchids represented above the first agrees to Cribb 2013 and most Chinese refernces and most likly is the correct photo for the species. The second photo corresponds to what the Indian refernces show and I am not sure what it may represent.
Synonyms Alismorkis lindleyana (Lindl.) Kuntze 1891; Calanthe plantaginea var. lushuiensis K.Y.Lang & Z.H.Tsi 1987
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; The Orchids of North-Western Himalaya Vol IX Part II Duthie 1906 drawing fide to the first photo; Indian Orchids, Guide to Identification and Culture vol 2 Pradhan 1979 drawing fide to the second photo; Orchids of North West Himalaya Deva & Naithani 1986 drawing fide to the first photo; Orchids of Kumaun Himalayas Pangtey, Samant and Rawat 1991; The Manual of Cultivated Orchids Bechtel, Cribb and Laurent 1992 drawing fide tothe second photo; Orchids of Bhutan Pearce & Cribb 2002; Orchids of India A Glimpse Misra 2007 drawing fide to the second photo; Native Orchids From Gaoligongshan Maountains, China Xiaohua, Xiaodong and Xiaochun 2009 as C plantaginea var lushuiensis; Flora of China Vol 25 Zhengyi, Raven & Deyuan 2009; Flora of China Vol 25 Zhengyi, Raven & Deyuan 2009 as C plantaginea var lushuiensis; Flora of China Vol 25 Illustrations Zhengyi, Raven & Deyuan 2010 drawing fide to the first photo; The Genus Calanthe Clayton & Cribb 2013 drawing/photo fide to the first photo ; LANKESTERIANA 15(1): 7—50. Jeewan Singh Jalal & J. Jayanthi 2015 photo fide to the first photo; Atlas of Native Orchids of China Vol 2 Jin Xiaohua, Li Jianwu and Ye Deping 2019 photo fide to the frst photo;
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