Encyclia ambigua [Lindley] Schlechter 1914
Photo by © David Hunt
Drawing By © R Jimenez/Hagsater & Soto 2002
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Common Name The Ambiguous Encyclia
Flower Size 2" [5 cm]
Found in Chiapas state of Mexico, and Guatemala as a medium sized, warm to cool growing epiphyte at elevations of 950 to 1875 meters and is similar in habit to Encyclia alata . They have clustered, ovoid-conical pseudobulbs carrying 2 to 3 apical, linear-ligulate, acute, gradually narrowing below into the clasping base leaves. They bloom in the late spring and summer on a terminal, 3'6" [105 cm] long, many flowered, racemose or branched inflorescence arising on a mature pseudobulb with up to 30, lightly fragrant flowers, akin to beeswax and honey.
This species can be confused with E trachychila found in Chiapas Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Honduras which has "brown sepals and petals, obovate-spathulate petals, a deep yellow lip with a midlobe carrying many prominent, purplish warts arising from raised lamellae and subquadrate column auricles, E ambigua has pale greenish cream flowers with narrowly oblanceolate-spathulate petals, a few broken lines of purple-pink dots on the lobes of the lip the midlobe of the lip with a few slightly raised veins showing very few to no warts and has a proportionally longer lip callus and obliquely triangular column auricles.
Synonyms Encyclia alborubra Archila, Chiron & Szlach. 2016 publ. 2019; Epidendrum alatum Lindl. 1847; *Epidendrum ambiguum Lindley 1853;
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;
Edwards's Bot. Reg. 33: t. 53 Lindley 1847 as Epidendrum alatum nom. illeg.;
Edwards's Bot. Reg. 33: t. 53 Lindley 1847 as Epidendrum alatum nom. illeg. DRAWING FIDE; ;
Fol. Orchid. 3: 18 Lindley 1853 as Epidendrum ambiguum
*Orchideen Beschreib. Kult. Zücht.: 208 Schlechter 1914
Die Orchideen Schlechter 1915;
The Genus Epidendrum Ames 1936 as Epidendrum ambiguum;
Encyclopedia of Cultivated Orchids Hawkes 1965 as Epidendrum ambiguum;
Las Orquedias De El Salvador Vol 1 Hamer 1974 as Epidendrum ambiguum drawing/photo fide;
The Genus Encyclia in Mexico Dressler & Pollard 1974 photo fide;
Las Orquedias de El Salvador Vol 3 Hamer 1981 as Epidendrum ambiguum drawing fide;
Icones Planetarum Tropicarum Plate 681 Dodson 1982 drawing fide;
Manual Of Orchids Stewart 1995; Orchid Digest Vol 61 #4 1997 as E virens photo fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 61 #4 1997 as E virens photo not = E trachychila;
Cattleyas and Their Relatives Vol V Withner 1998 photo fide;
Guatemala Y Sus Orquideas Behar & Tinschert 1998 photo fide;
Botanicas Orchids Laurel Glen 2002 photo fide;
Icones Orchidacearum 5 & 6 Orchids Of Mexico Parts 2 & 3 Plate 517 Hagsater, Soto 2002 drawing fide;
Orchids of Mexico Hagsater, Soto, Salazar, Jimenez, Lopez & Dressler 2005 photo fide;
Guia de Orquideas de Chiapas Carlos Rommel Beutelspacher Baigts 2013 photo fide;
Orchid Genera and Species in Guatemala Archila, Szlachchetko, Chiron, Lipinska, Mystkowska and Bertolini 2018
Revista Guatemalensis 19(2): 35 Archila, Chiron & Slach. 2016 publ. 2019 as Encyclia alborosea
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