Epidendrum pichinchae Schltr.1921 GROUP Andean SUBGROUP Sumacoense

Photo by Ecuagenera and their Ecuador Orchid Website

Drawing

Drawing by © Jimenez, Hágsater & E.Santiago and The AMO Herbario Website

Common Name or Meaning The Pichincha Epidendrum [A Province of Ecuador]

Flower Size 1.6" [4 cm]

Found in Ecuador on steep embankments at elevations of 1700 to 3500 meters as a large to giant sized, cold growing terrestrial with erect, cane-like, terete, branching in maturity stems enveloped in the basal 2/3's by tubular, non-foliaceous sheaths and carrying 12 to 15 all along the upper 1/3 of the main stem, 4 to 8 on the branches, small, erect-spreading, distichous, articulate, coriaceous, oblong to oblong-lanceolate, obtuse, apically slightly bilobed, apical margin crenate leaves that blooms in the summer through winter on a terminal, occuring only once, racemose, arching-nutant, peduncle, terete, thin, provided a the base with a lanceolate, acuminate bract, 2 to 4.8" [5 to 12 cm] long, dense, simultaneously many flowered inflorescence arising without a basal sheath and has variable in size, shorter to nearly as long as the ovary, linear-lanceolate, long-acuminate, amplexicaul floral bracts.

"Epidendrum pichinchae is part of GROUP Andean SUBGROUP Sumacoense characterized by the monopodial branching habit, cane-like stems, branching sub-apically, the branches shorter than the main stem, leaves coriaceous to sub-coriaceous and fleshy flowers, the lip entire or 3-lobed. The species is recognized by the tall plants, to 80" [2 meters] high, oblong to oblong-lanceolate leaves, 1.4 to 5.4" [3.5 to 13.5 cm] long, large flowers with the floral segments long-acuminate, lateral sepals falcate, .42 to .84" [15 to 21 mm] long, linear-lanceolate to linear-oblong petals, and the midlobe of the lip sub-rhombic with a long isthmus, and a prominent apicule. Epidendrum sumacoënse Hágsater & Dodson has somewhat smaller flowers, acute, apiculate, .52 to .6" [13 to 15 mm] long sepals, and cuneate petals, the apex rounded, and the midlobe of the lip emarginate, with a small apicule." Hagsater etal 2009

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Beih. 8: 80 Ecuador Schlechter 1921 Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Beih. Figuren-Atlas 57: 355 Schlechter 1929 drawing fide; Icones Planetarum Tropicarum Plate 480 Dodson 1989 drawing ok; Native Ecuadorian Orchids Vol 2 Dodson 2001 drawing/photo fide; Icones Orchidacearum 2 Plate 188 Hagsater & Dodson 1993 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 12 Plate 1274 Hagsater & Sanchez 2009 drawing ok; Icones Orchidacearum 12 Plate 1284 Hagsater 2009 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 12 Plate 1294 Hagsater 2009 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 14 Plate 1419 Hagsater & Santiago 2013 See recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 14 Plate 1431 Hagsater & Santiago 2013 See recognition section; Orquideas, Tesoro de Colombia Vol 2 Ortiz & Uribe 2017 as E aff pichinchae photo ok; fide;

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