Epidendrum bennettii Dodson 1989 GROUP Difforme

TYPE Drawing by Dodson

LATE

Common Name Bennett's Epidendrum [American Orchid Enthusiast, Botanist In Peru Passed in 2009]

Flower Size 2” [5 cm]

Found in Huanuco department of Peru in wet montane forests at elevations around 950 meters as a small sized, warm growing epiphyte with an erect stem enveloped almost completely by clasping, distichous, imbricating, compressed sheaths and carrying gradually larger above, thickly coriaceous, elliptic, ovate-oblong to narrowly ovate, emarginate apically leaves that blooms in the late summer and fall on a terminal, very short, few flowered inflorescence carrying pale green flowers.

Epidendrum bennettii is part of GROUP Difforme Characterized by the caespitose, sympodial plants, fleshy, pale green to glaucous leaves, apical inflorescence, sessile, rarely with a short peduncle, one-flowered to many-flowered, and then corymbose, without spathaceous bracts, fleshy, green to yellowish-green rarely white flowers. The species has pale green flowers, oblong, truncate, mucronate sepals, acuminate, 3-veined petals, a 3-lobed lip with prominent thickened veins, the lateral lobes ovate, sinuate, and the midlobe truncate. E solomonii is very similar and has tall plants, elliptic, rounded sepals, wide, spathulate, rounded, 5-veined petals, the lip without prominent thickened veins, lateral lobes oblong, entire and the bilobed midlobe. It is very similar to Epidendrum apaganum Mansf. has smaller plants and flowers, acute sepals and petals, 5-veined sepals, 3-veined petals, and the midlobe of the lip triangular, emarginate with prominent thickened veins. Epidendrum althausenii A. D. Hawkes widespread in the Amazon basin has shorter plants, 1 to rarely 2 flowers, linear, 3-veined petals, and a 3-lobed lip, subquadrate when spread, without prominent thickened veins." Hagsater etal 2004

Synonyms

ReferencesW3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; *Icones Plantarum Tropicarum Plate 0058 Dodson 1989 drawing fide; Orchids of Bolivia Vol II Laelinae Vasquez & Ibisch 2004; Icones Orchidacearum 7 Plate 788 Hagsater and Sanchez 2004 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 12 Plate 1202 Hagsater 2009 see recognition section;

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