Epidendrum portillae Hágsater & Dodson 2004 GROUP Megalospathum
Photo by Ecuagenera and their Ecuador Orchid Website
TYPE Drawing by © Jimenez, Hágsater & E.Santiago and The AMO Herbario Website
LATE
Common Name or Meaning Portilla's Epidendrum [Ecuadorian Nurseryman Current]
Flower Size .8" [2 cm]
Found in Ecuador as a miniature to small sized epiphyte with a simple, cane-like, terete stem carrying 10 to 13, evenly distributed along the stem, leaf sheath tubular, somewhat infundibuliform, ovate-lanceolate, acute, fleshy, apical margin minutely ciliate, pale green with scarce, minute purple dots that do not form transversal bands leaves that blooms in the late summer on an apical, erect, short, subsessile simultaneously 2 flowered inflorescence arising through a single, conduplicate, oblique, semi-ovate, truncate, margin minutely dentate spathe that covers about half of the ovary and carrying resupinate, foul scented [sulpher] flowers.
Part of the GROUP Megalospathum which also includes E megalospathum, E molleturense and E tigriphyllum
"Epidendrum portillae belongs to the GROUP Megalospathum characterized by the caespitose but branching habit, many leaved stem, fleshy, oblique leaves, a short, few flowered raceme subtended by large semiovate spathe, resupinate flowers, the column obliquely united to the lip, occasionally free. The species has large flowers, the sepals 1 to 1.12" [25 to 28 mm] long, .14" [3.5 mm] wide petals, the lip somewhat cordate, subovate, the marglns undulate when flattened, with two thick, laminar keels, the slightly arching column with a prominent, entire, fleshy c1inandrium. It c1osely resembles E. tigriphyllum which has somewhat smaller flowers, the sepals .88 to .92" [22 to 23 mm] long, narrower petals, up to .08" [2 mm] wide, a shorter, cordiform lip with the prominent callus formed by two superimposed pairs of calli, and the straight column with a prominent, fleshy, expanded clinandrium." Hagsater etal 2004
Synonyms
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; * Icones Orchidacearum 7 Part 4 Plate 777 Hagsater 2004 drawing ok; Icones Orchidacearum 7 Plate 762 Hagsater 2004 see recognition section
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