Rossioglossum williamsianum [Rchb.f] Garay & Kennedy 1976

Photo by © Lourens Grobler

to

Common Name William's Rossioglossum [Englsih Orchid Nurseryman 1800's]

Flower Size to 6" [to 15 cm]

Found in Mexico and Guatemala on trees in dense forests at elevations up to 1000 meters A medium to large sized, warm to cold growing epiphyte with oblong-ellipsoid, laterally compressed, ancipitous pseudobulbs enveloped basally by 2 or more, large sheaths and carrying 1 to 2 apical, arching, elliptic, coriaceous, subacute or obtuse, shortly grooved petiolate leaves that blooms on an axillary, erect, to 12" [30 cm] long, several [to 8] flowered inflorescence arising on a recently matured pseudobulb along the axil of a basal sheath with spathaceous, subacuminate bracts occuring in the spring and summer and is a rare find in Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras?.

The easiest way to identify this species when the lip can be viewed well is the thin, elongate, recurved, reddish column wings instead of the yellow, flabellate, pubescent, suborbicular column wings of the more common R grande. Of course there are many other differences including a longer inflorescence with more flowers but the column wings are diagnostic

Synonyms Odontoglossum grande var. williamsianum Rchb.f 1886; *Odontoglossum williamsianum Rchb. f. 1881;

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Die Orchideen Schlechter 1915 as Odontoglossum grande var williamsianum; AOS Bulletin Vol 33 No 11 1964 as Odontoglossum williamsonianum; Encyclopedia of Cultivated Orchids Hawkes 1965 as Odontoglossum williamsianum; Las Orquideas de el Slavador Vol 3 Hamer 1981 drawing/photo fide; Orquídea (Mexico City). 7(4): 1980 photo fide; ORQUIDEA (Méx . ) 8(2) MARZO 1982 drawing/photo fide; Las Orquedias de El Salvador Vol 3 Hamer 1981 drawing/photo fide; The Manual Of Cultivated Orchid Species Bechtel, Cribb & Launert 1992 photo fide; Rudolf Schlechter Die Orchideen Band 1C lieferung 33 - 36 2057 - 2308 Brieger 1997 drawing fide; Guatemala Y Sus Orquideas Behar & Tinschert 1998 photo fide; Fieldiana Biology, Flora Costa Ricensis Family # 39 Orchidaceae, subtribes Maxillariinae and Oncidiinae Atwood & Mora 1997 as excluded taxa; The Pictoral Encyclopedia of Oncidium Zelenko 2002; AOS Bulletin Vol 73 No 6 2004 photo fide; Vanishing Beauty, Native Costa Rican Orchids Vol 1 Pupulin 2005 photo fide; Orchid Species Culture: Oncidium, Bakers 2006; Icones Orchidacearum 5 - 6 Orchids of Mexico Part 2 - 3 Plate 663 Hagsater & Soto 2002 drawing fide; Orchid Digest Vol 71 No 1 2007 photo fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 78 No 5 2009 photo fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 82 #9 2013 photo fide; Guia de Orquideas de Chiapas Carlos Rommel Beutelspacher Baigts 2013 photo fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 86 #9 2017 photo fide; Orchid Genera and Species in Guatemala Archila, Szlachchetko, Chiron, Lipinska, Mystkowska and Bertolini 2018 photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 84 #1 2020 photo fide;

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------