Eulophia alta Fawc. & Rendle

Wild coco (en)

Species

Angiosperms > Asparagales > Orchidaceae > Eulophia

Characteristics

A large terrestrial herb 1–2 m. tall with white roots 1.5 mm. diameter.. Perennating organ a fleshy elongate subterranean rhizome ± 1 cm. diameter.. Leaves 4, plicate, erect, lanceolate, acuminate, up to 120 cm. long, 5–7.5 cm. wide, long-petiolate, sheathing at base.. Inflorescence densely many-flowered; peduncle 8–10 mm. diameter, green, bearing 3 sheaths along length; rhachis 16–35 cm. long; bracts reflexed, linear-aristate, acuminate, 10–30(–80) mm. long.. Flower not opening widely; sepals olive-green or green; lip and petals red-purple (albino variants are rare); pedicel and ovary 15–23 mm. long.. Dorsal sepal oblong-lanceolate, subacute, 18–20 mm. long, 4–5 mm. wide; lateral sepals oblong or ligulate, subacute to acute, 18–22 mm. long, 4–6.5 mm. wide.. Petals oblong-ligulate, acute to obtuse, 15–19 mm. long, 3–5 mm. wide.. Lip 3-lobed in apical half, saccate at base, 14–19 mm. long, 8–12 mm. wide; side lobes rounded; mid-lobe semicircular, 5–6 mm. long, 8 mm. wide, with an undulate margin; callus of 2 obliquely subquadrate flap-like ridges in middle of lip and with papillae on the central 5 viens of the mid-lobe.. Column 7–10 mm. long; foot 4 mm. long.. Fruit pendent, 30 mm. long.
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Erect terrestrial herbs with thickened, tuberous rhizomes usually made up of roughly triangular, subconic, corm-like annual sections. Leaves several, erect, lanceolate, acuminate, plicate, strongly veined, ultimately deciduous, 60-120 cm. long and 2-10 cm. wide, contracted below into a cylindric leafy petiole, the broad bases enveloping the corm-like pseudobulb. Inflorescences erect, lateral, leafless scapes, produced from the base of the corm, terminating in a raceme 70-100 cm. tall. Flowers many, of moderate size. Sepals free, erect, subequal, lanceolate to oblanceolate, acute, 2-2.5 cm. long and 0.7-0.8 cm. wide, the laterals adnate at the base to the column foot. Petals erect, oblong, obtuse, subequal to the sepals, 1.5-1.7 cm. long and 0.7-0.8 cm. broad. Lip 3-lobed, lateral lobes rounded, erect, the apices spreading, mid-lobe entire, usually reflexed, with numerous minutely denticulate longitudinal nerves; disk with 2 erect, alate processes, the base sub-saccate, forming a rounded mentum with the foot of the column. Column winged, arcuate, 0.8-1.0 cm. long, produced at the base into a foot.
Plants 70–170 cm. Leaves linear-elliptic to narrowly ovate, 20–120 × 3–11 cm, apex acuminate. Inflorescences erect, to 1 m; bracts narrowly ovate to filiform, 1–3 cm. Flowers many, 1.5–2.5 cm wide; sepals light green, very narrowly elliptic to narrowly obovate, apex acuminate to apiculate; lateral sepals slightly oblique, adnate to column foot; petals spreading, green or green with pink overflush, 13 × 7 mm, broader than sepals; lip red-maroon, concave, saccate, 11–17 × 18–28 mm, slightly to conspicuously 3-lobed, middle lobe apically obtuse, margins undulate, lateral lobes partially enclosing column; disc with erect lamellae; column 7–10 mm. Capsules ellipsoid, to 6 cm.
Flowers not opening widely; sepals greenish-yellow, petals and lip reddish-brown or red-purple, occasionally white with a purple disk on the lip.
Lip 14–19 × 8–12 mm, with a saccate base, 3-lobed in the apical half; side lobes rounded, mid-lobe 5–6 × 8 mm, the edges undulate.
Lip with a callus of 2 flap-like ridges in the middle, and with papillae on the 5 central veins of the mid-lobe.
Perennating organ a fleshy, subterranean rhizome c. 1 cm in diameter; roots 1.5 mm in diameter, white.
Dorsal sepal 18–20 × 4–5 mm, oblong-lanceolate, subacute; lateral sepals slightly longer and wider.
Leaves 4, up to 120 × 5–10 cm, erect, lanceolate, acuminate, plicate, with a long petiole.
Inflorescence densely many-flowered; scape with 3 sheaths.
Leaves lanceolate, up to 4 ft. long and 4 in. broad
Bracts 10–30 mm long, reflexed, linear, aristate.
Petals 15–19 × 3–5 mm, oblong-ligulate.
Column 7–10 mm long; foot 4 mm long.
Flowers numerous, green and purple.
Pedicel and ovary 18–20 mm long.
Terrestrial herb 1–2 m tall.
Fruit 3 cm long, pendent.
Scape up to 4 ft. high
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.85 - 1.7
Root system rhizome
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Fruit color -
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

Light -
Soil humidity -
Soil texture -
Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 9-11

Usage

Uses medicinal
Edible -
Therapeutic use Tumor (unspecified)
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Mode -
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Images

Flower

Eulophia alta flower picture by Daniel Barthelemy (cc-by-nc)

Distribution

Eulophia alta world distribution map, present in Angola, Burkina Faso, Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Brazil, Central African Republic, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominica, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Gabon, Georgia, Ghana, Guinea, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Haiti, Jamaica, Liberia, Nigeria, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, Paraguay, Sudan, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Suriname, Uganda, United States of America, Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of), Zambia, and Zimbabwe

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:99292-2
WFO ID wfo-0000959647
COL ID 3CBWD
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID 629702
Wikipedia (EN) Link
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Eulophia alta f. flavescens Platypus altus Platypus papilliferus Bletia alta Paphiopedilum epidendricum Limodorum altum Xylobium longifolium Cypripedium epidendricum Cyrtopera alta Cyrtopera amazonica Cyrtopera longifolia Dendrobium longifolium Eulophia alta Eulophia woodfordii Cyrtopera vellosiana Eulophia alta f. pallida Eulophia alta f. pelchatii Eulophia longifolia Govenia barbata Maxillaria longifolia Cyrtopera woodfordii Cyrtopodium woodfordii Eulophia longifolia var. flavescens Cyrtopera longifolia var. amazonica Eulophia longifolia var. amazonica Cyrtopera longifolia var. pachystelidia Eulophia alta var. pachystelidia Cyrtopera woodfordii var. pachystelidia Eulophia alta var. alba Lissochilus amazonicus