Epidendrum platypleuromegaloclinium Hágsater, Uribe Vélez & E.Santiago 2016 GROUP Andean SUBGOUP Cernuum
TYPE PHOTO By C Uribe Velez/TYPE Drawing by © Jimenez and The AMO Herbaria Website
Common Name The Wide Leaved E platystigma Epidendrum
Flower Size 1” [2.5 cm]
Found in Colombia on the Cordillera Occidental at elevations of 3350 to 3450 meters as a giant sized, cold growing terrestrial with many branching throughout, cane-like, terete, erect, straight, secondary branches shorter, tertiary stems shorter yet and those branches can branch again carrying numerous on the main stem, 5 to 6 on the branches, all along the apical half of the stem, alternate, articulate, suberect, unequal in size, basally smaller, green to purplish green, lanceolate, acute, margin crenulate towards the apex leaves that blooms in the fall on a terminal, without a spathe, racemose, rarely producing an additional very short raceme at the apex of the peduncle, occuring only once, peduncle .6” [1.5 cm] long, terete, thin, with a large, lanceolate, acuminate, amplexicaul bract at the apex, densely, simultaneously 35 to 45 flowered inflorescence with prominent, shorter than the ovary, gradually shorter above, narrowly triangular-lanceolate, acuminate, amplexicaul floral bracts and carrying resupinate, olive green flowers.
"Epidendrum platypleuromegaloclinium belongs to the GROUP Andean SUBGOUP Cernuum , which is characterized by the monopodial, branching habit, the erect cane-like stems with sub-apical branching, racemose, nutant inflorescence, compact, fleshy flowers, lip three-lobed. The species is recognized by the greenish white flowers, dorsally tinged pale purple, the floral segments partly spreading, sepals .48 to .56" [12 to 14 mm] long (including the aristate apex), petals with the margin strongly revolute, lip clearly 3-lobed with multiple radiating ribs covering the whole surface, apex a wide sinus with a fleshy knob formed by the apex of the mid-rib which is wide and fleshy. Epidendrum megaloclinium , endemic to Ecuador, is vegetatively very similar, and shares the large clinandrium-hood, but the inflorescence, is paniculate, the flowers larger, sepals .96 to 1" [24 to 25 mm] long (including the aristate apex), petals with the margins slightly revolute, lip entire, cordiform, with thickened ribs, and minutely mucronate. Epidendrum cuicochaënse Hágsater & Dodson also has a large clinandrium-hood, but has greenish yellow, slightly larger flowers, sepals .42 to .76" [15 to 19 mm] long, the petals acuminate, 3-lobed lip with the lateral lobes much smaller than the mid-lobe, the lip minutely apiculate." Hagsater etal 2016
Synonyms
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; * Icones Orchidacearum 15[2] Plate 1592 Hagsater & Santiago 2016 photo/drawing fide; Orquideas, Tesoro de Colombia Vol 2 Ortiz & Uribe 2017 drawing/photo fide;
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