Epidendrum orientale Hágsater & M.A.Díaz 1993 GROUP Difforme
Photos by © Patricia Harding
TYPE Drawing by © Jimenez, Hágsater & E.Santiago and The AMO Herbario Website
Common Name The Eastern Epidendrum [refers to the location of the species, Oriente Province Cuba]
Flower Size .6" [1.5 cm]
Found in Cuba and Jamaica in rainforests at elevations of 300 to 1200 meters as a mini-miniature to miniature sized, hot to cool growing epiphyte with simple, reed-like, terete, straight stems carrying 4 to 8, equidistant along the stem, subcoriaceous, elliptic, acute to bilobed, margin entire, not carinate dorsally, basally clasping leaves that blooms in the winter on a terminal, on a mature stem, occuring only once, sessile, .8 to 1.2" [2 to 3.2 cm] long, simultaneously 4 to 6 flowered inflorescence with much shorter than the ovary floral bracts and carrying brilliant green, resupinate flowers.
Part of the GROUP Difforme but is characterized by the compact appearance of the terete stems, the bilobed lip with subovate, sometimes notched at the margins lobes appearing 4 lobed, 2 short, wide divergent calli with irregularily crenate margins a deeply cordate base and emarginate apex forming a wide sinus, an arcuate column with a triangular prominence at each side of the apex and a somewhat prominent, entire, obconical, irregularily dentate clinandrium.
"Epidendrum orientale is a member of the GROUP Difforme which is characterized by the caespitose, sympodial plants, fleshy, pale green to glaucous leaves, apical inflorescence, sessile, rarely with a short peduncle, single flowered to corymbose, without spathaceous bracts, fleshy, green to yellowish-green, rarely white flowers. This species can be recognized by the compact apparence of the terete stems, the bilobed lip with the lobes subovate and sometimes notched at the margin, giving the impression of a 4-1obed lip, two short, wide, divergent calli, margins irregularly crenulate, deeply cordate base and emarginate apex forming a wide sinus, column arcuate, with a triangular prominence at each side of the apex, and clinandrium somewhat prominent, entire, obconical, irregularily dentate. Epidendrum floridense Hágsater differs in the larger plants, entire lip, and an obtuse tooth at each side of the apex of the straight column. Epidendrum boricuarum Hágsater & L. Sánchez has larger plants, somewhat laterally compressed stems, 3-1obed, emarginate lip with small drops of nectar, and calli narrow, not divergent. Epidendrum caribiorum distributed in south-eastern Cuba at 1200 meters altitude, has large, vigorous plants, somewhat compressed stems, narrowly obovate petals, 3-lobed lip, and not divergent calli." Hagsater etal 1993
Synonyms
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI Icones Orchidacearum 2 Plate 133 Hagsater 1993 see recognition section; * Icones Orchidacearum 2 plate 167 Hagsater & Salazar 1993 drawing fide; Orchidacearum Antillinae Nir 2000; Icones Orchidacearum 4 Plate 401 Hagsater 2001 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 4 Plate 429 Hagsater 2001 see recognition section; Orchids of Cuba Larrimendi and Llamacho 2005 photo fide; Icones Orchidacearum 8 Plate 827 Hagsater 2006 see recognition section; Orchid Flora of the Greater Antilles Ackerman 2014
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