Epidendrum fuscinum (Dressler) Hágsater 2005 GROUP Oerstedella SUBGROUP Intermixtum Photo by © Dressler and The Epidendra Website
TYPE Drawing by © Jimenez, Hágsater & E.Santiago and The AMO Herbario Website
EARLY 
Common Name or Meaning The Trident Epidendrum [refers to the lip]
Flower Size .8" [2 cm]
Found in Panama at elevations around 800 to 1000 meters as a miniature to medium sized, warm growing epiphyte with a simple, arising from near the base of the previous stem, cane-like, terete, thin, erect, straight stem enveloped basally by non foliaceous, verrucose, tubular sheaths and carrying 6 to 12, throughout the apical half, alternate, articulate, spreading, lower ones deciduous, ovate to ovate-elliptic, obtuse, generally bilobed leaves that blooms in the early spring on a terminal and lateral, erect, terete, thin, .8 to 3.2" [2 to 8 cm] long including the .2 to .6" [.5 to 1.5 cm] long peduncle, the laterals racemose, the apical paniculate, 12 to 17 flowered inflorescence and much shorter than the ovary, triangular-ovate, acute floral bracts.
"Epldendrum fuscinum belongs to the GROUP Oerstedella which is characterized by the sympodial habit, mostly verrucose stems, and the rostellem which is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the column, forming a wide, open sinus and SUBGROUP Intermixtum which has small, membranaceous flowers with a petaloid, usually bifid clinandrium hood, and obovoid, laterally compressed pollinia with long, granulose caudicles. The species is recognized by the medium large, pale green flowers with sepals .52 to .6" [13 to 15 mm], with the lip, while, 3-lobed, the lateral lobes are three times longer than wide and the midlobe linear, acute, flowering in March and April. Epidendrum folsomii Hágsater is very similar but nas smaller flowers with sepals .36 to .4" [9 to 10 mm], with ochre-colored sepals and petals, the lobes of the lip narrower and flowerng from July to October. Epidendrum intermixtum Ames & C. Schweinf. has even smaller flowers with sepals .24 to .38" [6 to 8.5 mm], pale green and white flowers, with the lateral lobes of the lip only twice as long as they are wide, the midlobe oblong-ovate, minutely apiculate, and a bifid clinandrium-hood. Epidendrum chalcochronum Hágsater has longer lateral inflorescences, with the flowers very similar to those of E. intermixtum but reddish to olive-green, with an entire clinandrium." Hagsater etal 2007
Synonyms *Oerstedella fuscina Dressler 1982
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Orquídea (Mexico City), n.s., 8(2): 347, 349 Dressler 1982 as Oerstedella fuscina drawing/photo fide; Icones Orchidacearum 8 Plate 810 Hagsater and Sanchez 2006 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 8 Plate 818 Hagsater and Sanchez 2006 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum Vol 8 Plate 833 Hagsater & Sanchez 2006 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum Vol 8 Plate 845 Hagsater & Sanchez 2006 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum Vol 8 Plate 893 Hagsater & Sanchez 2006 see recognition section; *Icones Orchidacearum 9 plate 939 Hagsater & Sanchez 2007 drawing fide;
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