Epidendrum sulcatum Ames GROUP Alpicolum SUBGROUP Cyclotylosum

Holotype by © Oakes Ames and The Herbario Virtual Austral American Website

Common Name The Sulcate Epidendrum [refers to the deep longitudinal grooves on the back of the column which are separated by a rounded rib]

Flower Size .8" [2 cm]

Found in Cauca department of Colombia and Peru at elevations of 2500 to 3000 meters as a small to medium sized, cold growing epiphyte with canelike, branching, new growth arising from above the base of the previous stem and carrying distichous, all along the upper 1/3rd of the stem, coriaceous, oblong-linear, acute, carinate mid nerve leaves that blooms in the winter on a terminal, arching, peduncle to 8.8" [22 cm] long, rachis to 5.6" [14 cm] long, lax, simultaneously several flowered inflorescence with elongate, narrowly lanceolate, acuminate, acute, longer than the ovary floral bracts and carrying greenish yellow flowers.

"Epidendrum sulcatum Ames, is part of the GROUP Alpicolum SUBGROUP Cyclotylosum characterized by the sympodial, caspitose to sometimes somewhat creeping habit, stems cane-like, simple, several leaved, with an elongate, apical, racemose, lax-flowered inflorescence, the flowers are star-shaped, membranaceous, the lip 3-lobed, not fleshy thickened, bicallose, the mid-lobe rectangular to triangular, the lateral lobes dolabriform to semi-orbicular. The species is recognized by the midlobe of the lip much longer than broad and two small calli at the base of the lip, sometimes with a sliort keel in the middle, but the disc of the lip is not thickened." Epidendrum cyclotylosum has small flowers with linear-oblanceolate petals and the lip 3-lobed, the lobes subequal in size, the margin entire, and a large, suborbicular, concave callus which occupies a large part of the surface of the lip, and is striated. Epidendrum rhodoides has somewhat larger leaves, larger flowers, sepals .4 to .44" [10 to 11 mm] long, wider narrowly obovate, 5-veined petals, the margin of the side lobes of the lip irregular-erose, and the lip with two long, parallel calli with the surface inbetween striated." Adapted from E cyclotylosum Icones 7 Plate 730 Hagsater etal 2004

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; * Studies in the Family Orchidaceae 7: 99 Ames 1922; Fieldiana Biology, Vol 33, 1st Supple. to the Orchids of Peru Schweinfurth 1970; Icones Orchidacearum 7 Plate 730 Hagsater and Sanchez 2004 see recognition section; Orquideas, Tesoro de Colombia Vol 2 Ortiz & Uribe 2017;

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