Encyclia diota (Lindl.) Schltr. 1918
Photos by © Sune Holt
Drawing By © Miguel Soto
Common Name Two-eared Encyclia
Flower Size 3/4" [2 cm]
Found from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua as a medium sized, hot to cool growing epiphyte, lithophyte or terrestrial which occurs at elevations of 200 to 1800 meters in pine-oak, and tropical deciduous forest with conical, ovoid, wrinkled pseudobulbs carrying 1 or 2, linear-liguate, keeled leaves that blooms mostly in the spring on an apical, 12 to 40" [30 to 100cm] long, minutely verrucose, racemose or paniculate inflorescence arising on a mature pseudobulb and is much longer than the leaves carrying many [10 to 80], showy, fragrant flowers.
"The species is distinguished by the spatulate sepals and petals. Thc yellow flowers distinguish it from Encyclia atrorubens (Rolfe) Schltr. 1918 , a closely related species with dark purple flowers and a westernmost distribution. Encyclia selligera is also similar but the lip is pinkish-white and the flowers notoriously larger." Hagsater & Salazar 1990
Synonyms Encyclia diota ssps diota Dressler & Pollard 1974; Encyclia insidiosa (Rchb. f.) Schltr. 1920; *Epidendrum diotum Lindl. 1843; Epidendrum insidiosum Rchb. f. 1876
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;
Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Beih. 7: 254 Schlechter 1920 as E insidiosa;
Orchid Digest Vol 34 #9 1970 as Epidendrum diotum drawing fide;
Las Orquedias De El Salvador Vol 1 Hamer 1974 as Epidendrum diotum drawing/photo fide;
The Genus Encyclia in Mexico Dressler & Pollard 1974 photo fide;
Las Orquedias de El Salvador Vol 3 Hamer 1981 as Epidendrum diotum drawing fide;
Icones Planetarum Tropicarum Plate 689 Dodson 1982 drawing fide;
Selbyana Vol 10 Orchids of Central America Hamer 1988 drawing fide;
Icones Orchidacearum I Plate 18 Hagsater and Salazar 1990 drawing ok;
Manual Of Orchids Stewart 1995 drawing good;
Cattleyas and Their Relatives Vol 5 Withner 1998 photo fide;
Guatemala Y Sus Orquideas Behar & Tinschert 1998 photo fide;
Cattleyas and Their Relatives Vol VI Withner 2000 as E insidiosa excluded species;
Guia de Orquideas de Chiapas Carlos Rommel Beutelspacher Baigts 2013 photo fide;
Le Petit Larousse des Orquidees Lecoufle, Bartholemy and Schmidt 2013 photo fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 80 #3 2016 photo fide;
Orchid Genera and Species in Guatemala Archila, Szlachchetko, Chiron, Lipinska, Mystkowska and Bertolini 2018;
Materials to the Orchid Flora of Colombia Vol IV:466 Szlatchetko & Kolanowska 2023 drawing/photo fide;
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~Encyclia diota subsp. diota Nagel
Photo courtesy of Noble Bashor
Oaxaca Mx., 1300m elev., South of Oaxaca (city) on road to Isthmus, Epiphytic on oaks.
Encyclia diota (Lindl.) Schltr. 1918 var rubra
Photo courtesy of Jerry Bolce
