Lepanthes flaccida Luer & Hirtz 1996 SUBGENUS Lepanthes SECTION Lepanthes SUBSECTION Lepanthes SERIES Lepanthes

TYPE Drawing by © Carl Luer and The Swiss Orchid Foundation at the Jany Renz Herbaria Website

Common Name The Weak Lepanthes [refers to the blades of the lip]

Flower Size .2" [5 mm]

Found in east central Ecuador at elevations around 2200 meters as a mini-miniature sized, cold growing epiphyte with a slender, erect to suberect, weak ramicaul enveloped by 6 to 8, minutely ciliate lepanthiform sheaths and carrying a single, apical, suberect, coriaceous, narrowly ovate, acute to acuminate, cuneate below into the petiolate base leaf that blooms in the summer on a slender, congested, distichous, 1" [2.5 cm] long, successively several flowered inflorescence arising on the top of the leaf and carrying muricate floral bracts.

"The habit is weak with slender stems bearing more or less spreading, acuminate leaves and a short inflorescence lying on top. The sepals are ovate and mnutely denticulate. The petals are transverse with more or less oblong, oblique, obtuse lobes. The lip blades od the lip are thin and membraneous, held above the column by slenser, weak connectives from the base. The connectives form a suborbicular body connate to the base of the column. The large, pubescent appendix, similar tothat of L camptica, is broadly hinged tothe anterior margin. The appendix is convex below the middle." Luer 1996

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; *Icones Pleurothallidinarum Vol XIV Systematics of Draconanthes, Lepanthes subgenus Marsipanthes and subgenus Lepanthes of Ecuador Luer 1996 drawing fide; Flora of Ecuador No 88 Lepanthes and affiliates Dodson & Luer 2011 drawing fide

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