Lepanthes titanica Luer & Hirtz 1987 SUBGENUS Lepanthes SECTION Lepanthes SUBSECTION Lepanthes SERIES Lepanthes

TYPE by © Carl Luer

LATE EARLY

Common Name Titanic's Lepanthes [refers to the greek mythological god]

Flower Size .2" [5 mm]

Found in Bolivar province of Ecuador at elevations around 2800 meters as a large sized, cold growing epiphyte with a stout, erect ramicaul enveloped by 11 to 16, microscopically ciliate lepanthiform sheaths carrying a single, apical, erect, coriaceous, oblong,, subacute to acuminate, cuneate below into the petiolate base leaf that blooms in the late summer and early fall on a stout, disitchous, to 1.76" [4.4 cm] long, successively many flowered inflorescence arising on the back of the leaf with frequently 2 flowers open simultaneously.

"Vegetatively one of the largest Lepanthes with stout, multisheathed ramicauls exceeding 20" [50 cm] long in height including the leaf. The flowers, only medium in size and not particularily remarkable are spaces distanthly at the base of the raceme, but the far majority of the flowers are congested in the raceme. The sepals are broad and shortly acuminate, the petals are bilobed with the lower lobes small and triangular and the oblong blades of the lip are supported by short, broadly cuneate connectives." Luer 1996

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; * Lindleyana 2: 147 Luer & Hirtz 1987 Icones Pleurothallidinarum Vol XIV Systematics of Draconanthes, Lepanthes subgenus Marsipanthes and subgenus Lepanthes of Ecuador Luer 1996 drawing fide; Native Ecuadorian Orchids Vol 2 Dodson 2001 drawing fide; Flora of Ecuador No 88 Lepanthes and affiliates Dodson & Luer 2011 drawing fide

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------