Laelia tereticaulis Hoehne 1958 SUBGENUS Parviflorae SECTION Rupestres Withner 1990

Photo by © Lourens Grobler

Common Name The Twisted-Stem Laelia

Flower Size 1.8" [4.5 cm]

Found in Minas Gerais state of Brazil as a medium sized, cool growing lithophyte with tall, erect, glaucous, grayish green pseudobulbs carrying a glaucous, white powdered, grayish green, narrowly oblong, fleshy-coriaceous, acute, leaf that blooms in the spring on an erect, arising through a reddish-green sheath, 16.8" [42 cm] long overall, peduncle 6 to 8" [15 to 20 cm] long, rachis to 8.8" [22 cm] long, 6 to 12 flowered inflorescence.

Often cited as a synonym of L crispata but this one differs in the reflexed posture of the 7 to 9 flowers, evenly spread along the inflorescence appearing in the spring versus L crispata which has 3 to 5 flowers crowded towards the apex, rounder in appearance and arising in the winter. Also similar to L rupestris but this one differs in the height and form of the pseudobubls and blue grey clor of the leaf, the terminal lobe of the lip , intensely red, and the dimmensions of the floral segments.

Synonyms Cattleya teretecaulis (Hoehne) Van den Berg 2008; Hoffmannseggella tereticaulis (Hoehne) H.G. Jones 1974; Sophronitis tereticaulis (Hoehne) C. Berg & M.W. Chase 2000

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;

Arq. Bot. Estado São Paulo, n.s., f.m., 2: 163 Hoehne 1952

AOS Bulletin Vol 27 No 11 1958;

Florida Orchidist 17(4): 156 H G Jones 1974 as Hoffmannseggella tereticaulis;

Die Orchideen 3 Auflage Bd 1 Sonderabdruck aus Schlechter Lieferung 10 576 - 632 Brieger, Maatsch and Senghas 1977 photo fide;

Orchid Digest Vol 48 No 1 1984 photo fide;

Cattleya and Their Relatives Vol 2 Withner 1990 photo fide;

Lindleyana Vol 15 No 2:118 2000 as Sophronitis tereticaulis;

Neodiversity 3: 11 Vn den Berg 2008 as Cattleya tereticaulis;

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

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