!Oestlundia cyanocolumna (Ames, F.T. Hubb. & C. Schweinf.) W.E. Higgins 2001
Photo by © Eric Hunt
Photo courtesy of Weyman Bussey
Drawing by M.A. López Rosas /Hagsater & Soto
and EARLY
Common Name The Purple-Blue Column Oestlundia
Flower Size .6" [1.5 cm]
Endemic to Nuevo Leon, Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosi, Guanajuato, Queretaro, Hidalgo, Puebla, Vera Cruz and Oaxaca states of Mexico in oak forests at elevations of 1500 to 2000 meters as a mini-miniature to miniature sized, cool growing epiphyte with clustered, conical-ovoid pseudobulbs carrying 2 to 3, apical, distichous, arcuate, linear, acute, conduplicate leaves and blooms in the spring and early summer on a terminal, arcuate-pendulous, racemose to 2 to 3 branching, 1.6" to 12" [4 to 30 cm] long, slightly fractiflex, slowly successively 1 to 15 flowered inflorescence.
"This is the type species of the genus Oestlundia. Molecular data shows this genus as a sister to Prosthechea. Oestlundia cyanocolumna is easily distinguished by its tiny plants with minute pseudobulbs bearing grass-like leaves, arching-dropping inflorescence and flowers with olive green tepals and a white lip spotted with violet. The petals are linear, very narrow and the lateral teeth of the column are long and wing-like. The specific epithet refers to the violet-bluish column unique to this species. It is closely related to Oestlundia ligulata (La Llave & Lex.) Soto Arenas 2008 with yellow flowers, distributed in the dry oak forests of SW Mexico." E. Hágsater & M. Soto 2008
It grows mounted on cork or treefern or potted in chopped treefern chunks with semi-shade, good air movement and watering while growing and a lessening when resting.
Synonyms Encyclia cyanocolumna (Ames, F.T. Hubb. & C. Schweinf.) Dressler 1961 ; *Epidendrum cyanocolumna Ames, F.T. Hubb. & C. Schweinf. 1934;
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;
Bot. Mus. Leafl. 3: 2 Ames, F.T.Hubb. & C.Schweinf. 1934 as Epidendrum cyanocolumna;
The Genus Epidendrum Ames 1936 as Epidendrum cyanocolumna;
Brittonia 13: 265 Dressler 1961 as Encyclia cyanocolumna;
Die Orchideen 3 Auflage Bd 1 Sonderabdruck aus Schlechter Lieferung 9 513 - 576 Brieger, Maatsch and Senghas 1977 as Hormidium cyanocolumna;
Selbyana 22: 4 W E Higgins 2001 as Prosthechea cyanocolumna;
Orchid Digest Vol 66 #3 2002 photo fide;
The Cattleya and Their Relatives Vol 7 The Debateable Epidendrum Withner & Harding 2004 photo fide;
Icones Orchidacearum fascile 10 plate 1056 Hagsater & Soto 2008 drawing fide
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