Polystachya greatrexii Summerh. 1966 SECTION Eurychilae Summerhayes
Photo by © Lourens Grobler.
Photo by Bart Wursten ©, and his Flora Of Zimbabwe WebSite
Holotype Collection Sheet & Drawing
Collection Sheet & Drawing by © Summerhayes
Common Name Greatrex's Polystachya [English Orchid Enthusiast in Zimbabwe 1900's]
Flower Size .3" [.7 cm]
Found in Zaire, Tanzania, Malawi and Zimbabwe in high rainfall woodlands and evergreen forests at elevations of 900 to 2100 meters as a mini-miniature sized, warm to cold growing epiphyte and occasional lithophyte with chain-like, round, purplish pseudobulbs carrying deciduous, divergent, linear, obtuse to shortly bilobed apically leaves that are not present at blooming which is in the spring on a terminal, 1 to 2" [3 to 5 cm] long, densely to 10 flowered, pubescent, racemose inflorescence and carries non-resupinate, primrose scented flowers.
"This attractive little species is very similar to P brassii in its short pseudobulbs, narrow leaves and very short few flowered inflorescence It can easily be distinguished by the shape of the labellum which here is undivided, roughly elliptical in shape and distinctly longer than broad, whereas in P. brassii the labellum is distinctly trilobed and broader than long. Although by the possession of the narrow labellum the species departs from one of the prime characteristics of sect. Eurychilae it clearly falls into the group on account of the other floral and vegetative chracters." Summerhayes 1966
Synonyms Polystachya couloniana Geerinck & Arbonn. 1996 publ. 1997
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;
* Kew Bull. 20: 184 Summerhayes 1966
The Orchids of South Central Africa Williamson 1977 drawing/photo fide;
Malawi Orchids vol 1 La Croix 1983 drawing fide;
Flora of Tropical East Africa Orchidaceae Part 2 Cribb 1984 drawing fide;
Orchids Travel By Air A Pictoral Safari Mulder, Mulder-Roelfsema and Schuiteman 1990 photo fide;
Belg. J. Bot. 129: 68 Geerinck & Arbonne 1996 publ. 1997 as P couloniasna;
African Orchids in the Wild and Cultivation La Croix 1997 photo ok;
Flora Zambesiaca Vol 11 Orchidcaceae Part 2 Pope 1998 drawing good;
Richardiana 7: 63 Mytnik & Szlach. i 2007 as Geerinckia couloniana
Orchid Digest vol 71 #3 2007 photo fide;
Orchidaceae of West Central Africa Vol 2 Szlachetko etal 2015 drawing good;
AOS Bulletin Vol 89 #1 2020 photo fide
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