Epidendrum porphyrostachyum Hágsater & E.Santiago 2015 GROUP Macrostachyum
TYPE Photo Diego Calderon/TYPE Drawing by © R Jimenez M and The AMO Herbaria Website
EARLY
Common Name The Purple Ear of Corn Epidendrum [refers to the purple flowers, stem and leaves of this species that set it apart from others in the Macrostachyum group]
Flower Size 1.2” [3 cm]
Found in Antioquia department of Colombia and in the Parque Nacional Natural Tatamá between Risaralda and Choco departments of Colombia at elevations of 1830 to 2000 meters as a small sized, cool to cold growing terrestrial with cane-like, erect, straight, branching above when mature stems carrying numerous on the main stem, all along the stem, articulate, alternate, coriaceous, purple colored, narrowly elliptic, acute, margin entire leaves that blooms in the fall and early winter on a terminal, without a spathe, racemose, erect, occuring only once, peduncle .6 to .8” [1.5 to 2 cm] long, subterete, rachis to 9” [22.5 cm] long, terete, slightly sinuous, helicoid but somewhat secund, successively several, eventually simultaneously, 25 to 27 on the main stem, 6 on the branches, flowered inflorescence with prominent, slightly longer than the ovary, gradually diminishing in size towards the apex, narrowly triangular, acute, clasping floral bracts and carrying non- resupinate, fleshy, wine-red colored flowers.
"Epidendrum porphyrostachyum belongs to the GROUP Macrostachyum , which is characterized by the monopodial plants with sub-apical branching, rugose leaf sheaths, large leaves generally spreading, racemose, erect inflorescence, and fleshy flowers generally green to black (ripe olive colored), as well as yellow to pink to purple, with an entire, conduplicate, generally ecallose and pubescent lip embracing the column, and the nectary pubescent to papillose in front of the stigmatic cavity and at least at the base of the lip. The species is recognized by the concolor, purple leaves and plants, elongate, many-flowered inflorescence to 9.8" [24 cm] long, narrowly elliptic leaves 5.2 to 5.8" x .92 to 11.24" [13 to 14.5 x 2.3 to 3.1 cm], dorsal sepal and petals slightly reflexed, sepals acute, and the triangular-cordiform lip with the apex much fleshy-thickened. Epidendrum bangii has shorter inflorescences, 2 to 5.6" [5 to 14 cm] long, with about half as many flowers, narrowly lanceolate leaves 2 to 5.6 x ,52 to .96" [5 to 14 x 1.3 to 2.4 cm), green in color, sepals acuminate, and the flowers purple-green to greenish brown to greenish yellow, lip and column basally reddish. Epidendrum oxycalyx Hágsater & Dodson has lanceolate, green leaves 3.6 to 6.8" x 1.12 to 1.8" [9-17 x 2.8 to 4.5 cm], apically acuminate, inflorescence 3.2 to 9.2" [8 to 23 cm] long, sepals and petals long-acuminate, and flowers reddish brown, somewhat tinged yellow. Epidendrum munchiquense Hágsater, E.Santiago & García-Revelo has a much longer 10 to 16" [25 to 40 cm], lax-flowered inflorescence, the leaves green, sepals and petals spreading, the lip deltate with the base sub-truncate, flowers scarlet, turning grayish brown after extracting the pollinia." Hagsater 2015
Synonyms
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; *Icones Orchidacearum 15 [1] Plate 1550 Hágsater & E.Santiago 2015 drawing fide; Icones Orchidacearum 15 [1] Plate 1552 Hagsater & Sanchez 2015 see recognition section; Orquideas, Tesoro de Colombia Vol 2 Ortiz & Uribe 2017 photo fide;
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