Cranichis picta Rchb.f. 1876 Polyantha Group 6
Photo by © Sociedad Colombiana de Orquideologia Flickr Photo Page
Scan by © The Swiss Orchid Foundation at the Jany Renz Herbaria
Common Name The Colored Cranichis
Flower Size .2" [5 mm]
Found in Colombia and Pichincha province of Ecuador in wet, upper montane cloud forests at elevations around 2400 to 2800 meters as a miniature sized, cold growing terrestrial with usually one or deciduous at flowering, basal, narrowly obovate to elliptic, gradually narrowing into the cuneate, then elongate petiolate base leaf that blooms at most any time of the year on an erect, peduncle 8" [20 cm] long, provided with a few remote, lanceolate, acute sheathing bracts, rachis 4" [10 cm] long, glabrous, densely many flowered, racemose inflorescence that is distinctly several sheathed and has ovate-lanceolate, acuminate, concave floral bracts.
"Distinguished by the foliaceous peduncle, the glabrous ovary, the lip with a distinct membraneous margin, the 5 nerved disc that is not verrucose, the 1 to 3 nerved, more or less erose undulate petals." Szlachetko & Kolanowska 2020
Synonyms
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;
Flora Brasilica Vol XII II 13-43: 129 Hoehne 1945;
Flora of Ecuador No 9 225[1] Garay 1978;
Icones Planetarum Tropicarum Plate 423 Dodson 1989 drawing fide;
Native Ecuadorian Orchids Vol 1 Dodson 1993 photo fide;
Flora Of Ecuador # 76 225[2] Dodson & Luer 2005;
Orchids, A Colombian Treasure Vol 1 Ortiz & Uribe 2014 drawing ok
Materials to the Orchid Flora of Colombia Vol 3: 62 Szlachetko & Kolanowska 2020
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