Brassia bidens Lindley 1844

Photo by © Jay Pfahl

to

Common Name The Two-Toothed Brassia

Flower Size 1 1/2" wide [3.75 cm]

Collected in northern Peru but also found in Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana as well as Brazil at altitudes of 200 to 1500 meters occuring as a medium to large sized, hot to cool growing epiphyte or a terrestrial with ellipsoid to oblong, somewhat laterally compressed, light green pseudobulbs that carry, usually 2, apical, oblong to elliptic oblong, subacute, light green leaves. It is a more miniature plant than other Brassia that I am aware and it blooms in the spring in northern cultivation with a short, axillary, erect raceme with several to many flowersfor this genus and arise on a mature pseudobulb.

The Flowers of this species are only about 3 1/2" across which is quite small for the genus.

Synonyms Brassia lanceana var. viridiflora Hook. 1841; Oncidium bidens (Lindl.) Rchb. f. 1863

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Orchids of Peru Schweinfurth 1960; Venezuelan Orchids Vol 2 Dunsterville & Garay 1961 drawing fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 33 #8 1964; AOS Bulletin Vol 36 No 9 1967; Flora de Venezuela Volumen XV Part 5 Foldats 1970 drawing good; Orchidaceae Brasilenses Band 2 Pabst & Dungs 1977 Drawing good; Orchids of Venezuela, An Illustrated Field Guide Vol 1 Dunsterville & Gary 1979 drawing ok; Native Colombian Orchids Vol 1 COS 1990 photo ok; Manual of Orchids Stewart 1993; Rudolf Schlechter Die Orchideen Band 1C lieferung 33 - 36 2057 - 2308 Brieger 1997; Orchids of Venezuela [An illustrated field guide] Vol. 1 Ramiro and Carnevali 2000 drawing fide; Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana Vol 7 Steyermark, Berry, Yatskievych and Holst 2003 drawing ok; Orchid Species Culture: Oncidium, Bakers 2006; Las Orquideas del Peru Izerskyy & Bezverhov 2011 photo fide; Orquideas de Roirama Luz & Franco 2012 photo ok; Orchids, A Colombian Treasure Vol 1 Ortiz & Uribe 2014 drawing/photo fide

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