Epidendrum medusae (Rchb. f.) Pfitzer 1889 GROUP Nanodes
Photo by © Eric Hunt
Photos by © Don Dennis
Photo by © Allen Black
Photo by © Patricia Harding
MOSTLY
Common Name The Medusa Epidendrum [refers to the hairy lips with a likeness to snakes and the greek mythology character with snakes for hair]
Flower Size to more than 3" [to more than 7.5 cm]
Found in Ecuador in wet montane cloud forests at elevations of 1800 to 2700 meters as a medium sized, epiphytic, cool growing epiphyte with a short rhizome giving rise to clustered, cane-like, laterally compressed, pendant stems that are basally branching, and completely enveloped by compressed, conduplicate, fleshy, gray-green, foliaceous sheaths carrying coriaceous, narrowly oblong-ovate, apically unequally bilobed, basally somewhat twisted, clasping leaves that blooms most often in the summer on an axillary, short, single [sometimes up to 3] flowered inflorescence with fantastic, large, heavy-textured flowers.
Best grown on a mount with cool temperatures and constant moisture and medium light.
"Epidendrum medusae (Rchb. f.) Pfitzer is part of the GROUP Nanodes characterized by the caespitose to creeping sympodial plants with the short stems enveloped completely by the base of the non-articulate, fleshy, imbricate leaves and having a sessile, few flowered inflorescence. The species has much larger flowers than any of the following and has a very prominent fimbriate lip. Epidendrum uleinanodes is closely related to Epidendrum schlechterianum Ames, and is distinguished by its smaller flowers, prominently winged column and the deeply fimbriate clinandrium. Epidendrum oxynanodes Hágsater has larger flowers, the sepals being some .8" [2 cm] long, but distinguished by the long acuminate sepals and petals, and the column not winged, the clinandrium entire. Epidendrum schlechterianum has oblong, acute sepals and petals. Other species in this group such as E. gonzalez-tamayoi Hágsater, E. congestum Rolfe, E. congestoides Ames & C. Schweinf. and E. longirepens (C. Schweinf.) C. Schweinf., all have smaller flowers, the sepals being less than .48" [12 mm] long, none have the prominent wings at the apex of the column." Adapted Icones plate 392 Hagsater etal 1999
Synonyms Epidendrum medusae (Rchb. f.) Seibert 1900; Epidendrum medusae (Rchb. f.) Schltr 1921; Nanodes medusae Rchb. f. 1867; Neolehmannia medusae (Rchb. f.) Garay 1877
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Die Orchideen Schlechter 1915; Encyclopedia of Cultivated Orchids Hawkes 1965 drawing fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 35 No 10 1966 photo fide; Die Orchideen 3 Auflage Bd 1 Sonderabdruck aus Schlechter Lieferung 9 513 - 576 Brieger, Maatsch and Senghas 1977 as Nanodes medusae; Icones Planetarum Tropicarum plate 465 Dodson 1982 as Nanodes medusae drawing fide; Orchids Travel By Air A Pictoral Safari Mulder, Mulder-Roelfsema and Schuiteman 1990 photo fide; The Manual Of Cultivated Orchid Species Bechtel, Cribb & Launert 1992 photo fide; Icones Orchidacearum 3 Plate 363 Hagsater 1999 see recognition section as gonzales-tamayoii; Icones Orchidaceaerum 3 Plate 392 Hagsater & Sanchez 1999 see recognition section; Native Ecuadorian Orchids Vol 2 Dodson 2001 drawing/photo fide; Rudolf Schlechter Die Orchideen Band 1C lieferung 42 - 43 pg 2626 - 2762 Brieger 2001 as Nanodes medusae photo fide; Flora's Orchids Nash & La Croix 2005 photo fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 78 #6 2009 photo fide; Orchid Species of Peru Zelenko Bermudez 2009 photo fide; Mille et Une Mini Orchideees Roguenant 2009 photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 74 #2 2010 photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 80 #1 2016 photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 81 #2 2017 photo fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 86 # 3 2017 photo fide;
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