Epidendrum porphyreodiscum Hágsater, D.Trujillo & E.Santiago 2010 GROUP Pseudepidendrum SUBGROUP Paniculatum

TYPE Drawing by © D Trujillo and The AMO Herbaria Website

Common Name The Purple Disc Epidendrum [refers to the central portion of the lip where the keels are found that in this species is purple]

Flower Size .6” [1.5 cm]

Found in the Provinces of Huanuco and Cusco Peru on the upper eastern slopes of the Andes at elevations of 1700 to 2358 meters as a medium sized, cool to cold growing, somewhat creeping epiphyte with simple, cane-like, laterally compressed, erect to slightly arching stem carrying 6 to 10, all along the apical half of the stem, articulate, distichous, unequal in size, basal one smallest, oblong-lanceolate, short-acuminate, margin entire leaves that blooms in the winter on a terminal, without a spathe, occuring only once, peduncle, thin, laterally compressed, 2 to 3, tubular towards the base, conduplicate above, acuminate, somewhat ancipitous bracts, rachis with 2 short branches, each subtended by a bract similar to the floral bracts but larger, paniculate, lax, simultaneously 40 flowered inflorescence with shorter than the ovary, linear-lanceolate, acuminate floral bracts and carrying resupinate, green flowers with the lip and the apical half of the column white and the disc has a solid purple spot.

"Epidendrum porphyreodiscum belongs to the GROUP Pseudepidendrum is characterized by caespitose plants, cane-like stems, acute to acuminate leaves, apical inflorescence, lacking a spathaceous bract, the petals filiform and the lip usually 3- lobed, with 3 parallel fleshy keels, the apical lobe often bifurcate, and the pollinia “bird-wing” type and SUBGROUP Paniculatum which has bicolor flowers, generally green with the lip and apex of the column white, the disc sometimes marked with purple to red. The species is recognized by the erect, somewhat arching stems, the small flowers (sepals -26 to .3" [6.5-7.5 mm] long, green with the lip white and a solid purple spot covering the disc, column thin at the base, .2" [5 mm] long. Epidendrum yungasense Rolfe has similar plants, but the flowers are green with a white lip and purple dots around the disc. Epidendrum parviflorum Ruiz & Pavón has erect plants, sepals .2" [5 mm] long, a very short, thick column .12" [3 mm] long, and the lip has a single wide callus. Epidendrum poeppigii Hágsater has linear-lanceolate, long, acuminate leaves, successive flowers and a short thick column 3 mm long." Hagsater etal 2010

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; * Icones Orchidacearum 13 Plate 1376 Hágsater, D.Trujillo & E.Santiago 2010 drawing fide; Icones Orchidacearum 14 Plate 1500 Hagsater & Sanchez 2013 see recognition section;

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