Epidendrum mittelstaedtii Hágsater 1993 GROUP Difforme

TYPE Drawing by © Jimenez and The AMO Herbaria Website

Common Name Mittelstaedt’s Epidendrum [Guatemalan Orchid Nurseryman and Collector of species current]

Flower Size 1” [2.5 cm]

Found in Guatemala at elevations around 1500 meters as a miniature to small sized, cool growing epiphyte with cane-like, simple, somewhat laterally compressed, erect stems carrying 4 to 5, equidistant, all along the stem, coriaceous, elliptic to ovate, asymetrically bilobed, margin entire leaves that blooms at most any time of the year on a terminal, on a mature stem, occuring only once, shortly pedunculate, subumbellate, simultaneously 4 to 5 flowered inflorescence with much shorter than the ovary, smooth, floral bracts and carrying resupinate, brilliant green flowers.

"Epidendrum mittelstaedtii is a member of the GROUP Difforme characterized by the caespitose, sympodial plants, fleshy, pale green to glaucous leaves, apical inflorescence, sessile, rarely with a short peduncle, one-flowered to many-flowered, and then corymbose, without spathaceous bracts, fleshy, green to yellowish-green rarely white flowers. The species can be recognized by the somewhat laterally compressed stems, markedly ascending leaves, 4 to 5 simultaneous, bright green flowers, broadly cordiform lip and clinandrium not prominent with margin crenate. The species most similar is Epidendrum succulentum Hágsater, which has bigger plants, leaves not ascending, 5 to 10 fragrant, green to yellowish-green flowers and prominent, fimbriate clinandrium. Epidendrum erectifolium Hágsater & L. Sánchez is also similar, but is distinguished by the slightly flexuous, terete stems, 4 to 17 flowers, 3-lobed lip with the midlobe bilobed, and a prominent, erose clinandrium." Hagsater etal 1993

Synonyms

ReferencesW3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; * Icones Orchidacearum 2 Plate 157 Hagsater 1993 drawing fide; Orchid Genera and Species in Guatemala Archila, Szlachchetko, Chiron, Lipinska, Mystkowska and Bertolini 2018

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