Epidendrum cryptorhachis Hágsater GROUP Epidendropsis SUBGROUP Gracillimum

TYPE Drawing by © Jimenez, Hágsater & E.Santiago and The AMO Herbario Website

LATE EARLY

Common Name or Meaning The Hidden Rachis Epidendrum [refers to the inflorescence within the bracts]

Flower Size .32" [8 mm]

Found in central Ecuador in cloud forests at elevations around 2900 meters as a small to medium sized, cold growing epiphyte with simple, short, reed-like, terete basally, laterally compressed above, thin, flexuous stems carrying 3 to 6, all along the stem, alternate, suberect and arching, coriaceous, linear-lanceolate, conduplicate, acuminate leaves that blooms in the late fall and early winter on a terminal, paniculate, erect, 7.6 to 12.8" [19 to 32 cm] long including the 2.6 to 5" [6.5 to 12.5 cm] long, thin, ancipitose, two winged, slightly sinuous peduncle, simultaneously many flowered inflorescence with 4 to 14 flowers on each branch without a spathe but has small, triangular, acute, shorter than the ovary floral bracts and carrying resupinate, membraneous, red brown flowers.

"Epidendrum cryptorhachis belongs to the GROUP Epidendropsis SUBGROUP Gracillimum characterized by the sympodial, caespitose, relatively small plants with non-thickened stems, long, paniculate inflorescence delicate, small flowers, and the long, narrow, subcoriaceous leaves. The species is recognized by the short plants with a long inflorescence, about twice as long as the apical leaf or more, appearing at first sight racemose, with an erect, laterally compressed rachis, prominent bracts, but under closer inspection, paniculate, with short, strict, parallel, 4 to 14 flowered racemes appearing from each of the upper bracts, ovary short, .2 to .24" [5 to 6 mm] long, the petals narrowly spatulate, .148 x .04" [3.7 x 1 mm], and a wide, reniform, 3-lobed lip, deeply cordate, the midlobe formed by two small, rounded lobes with a wide apicule in the sinus. It is similar to Epidendrum gracillimum but that species has narrower leaves, a long narrow nectary penetrating about half the ovary, linear petals, and an entire, reniform lip. Epidendrum physophorum Schltr. from Bolivia has a much shorter inflorescence, the branches widespread, flowers smaller, a short, inflated nectary, a comparatively slender column, sepals .121" [3.25 mm] long, petals linear, and the reniform, entire lip with a dentate-erose margin." Hagsater etal 2006

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; *Icones Orchidaceaeum 8 Plate 822 Hagsater & Sanchez 2006 drawing fide; Icones Orchidacearum 15 [2] Plate 1580 Hagsater & Sanchez 2016 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 15 [2] Plate 1600 Hagsater & Sanchez 2016 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 16[1] Plate 1656 Hagsater & Santiago 2018 See recognition section

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