Disa filicornis (L.) Thunb. 1794 SECTION Disa Linder
Plant and Flowers in situ South Africa
Photos by © Cameron McMaster
Photo by Karsten Wodrich
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Common NameThe Thread-Shaped Flower Spur Disa
Flower Size 5/8" [1.3 cm]
A miniature to small sized, cool to cold growing terrestrial orchid from southern South Africa on dry montane slopes in full sun at eleavtions of 300 to 1000 meters with 2 basal sheaths, then hyaline, dimorphic, lax to imbricate, cauline leaves then grading to many radical, linear leaves that blooms in the spring and summer on a 4 to 10" [10 to 25 cm] long, few to several [1 to 5] flowered, loosely subcorymbose inflorescence covered with narrow sheathing bracts.
Synonyms Disa filicornis var. latipetala Bolus 1913; Disa patens Sw. 1800; Disa reflexa (Lindl.) Rchb.f. 1865; Orchis filicornis L.f. 1782; Penthea filicornis (L.f.) Lindl. 1838; Penthea reflexa Lindl. 1838
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Die Orchideen Schlechter 1915; Encyclopedia of Cultivated Orchids Hawkes 1965 as Penthea filicornis; Die Orchideen 3 Auflage Bd 1 Sonderabdruck aus Schlechter Lieferung 5 257- 320 Brieger, Maatsch and Senghas 1974 as D patens; Die Orchideen 3 Auflage Bd 1 Sonderabdruck aus Schlechter Lieferung 5 257- 320 Brieger, Maatsch and Senghas 1974 as Schizodium reflexum; ; Wild Orchids of Southern Africa Stewart, Linder, Schelpe & Hall 1982 photo fide; Schlechteriana Vol 2 No 2 1991 photo as D patens; Orchids of Southern Africa Linder & Kurzwell 1999 photo fide; A molecular phylogeny for the large African orchid genus Disa Bytebier 2006; AOS Bulletin Vol 84 #5 2015 as D patens drawing fide;
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