Nervilia shirensis Schltr.

Species

Angiosperms > Asparagales > Orchidaceae > Nervilia

Characteristics

An erect terrestrial herb to 35 cm. high, glabrous except for the tuber, roots and lip.. Tuber globose, slightly compressed, to 3 cm. diameter, sparsely pubescent.. Leaf large, erect or suberect, ovate, broadly ovate or cordiform, truncate or narrowed at base, glabrous, to 14 cm. long and 11 cm. wide; petiole to 15 cm. long, holding the leaf well above the substrate.. Scape erect, fairly stout, to 35 cm. long, 0.4 cm. diameter; cataphylls 3–4, sheathing, spaced along scape, to 5 cm. long, acute or obtuse; bracts linear, setose, acute, to 2.5–3 cm. long.. Flowers 2 or very rarely 3, large, suberect, becoming pendent, borne close together at apex of scape, drying yellowish brown; pedicel terete, 0.6 cm. long; ovary much wider, 0.5 cm. long.. Dorsal sepal porrect, linear-lanceolate, acute, 2.8–3.4(–4) cm. long, to 0.6 cm. wide, yellowish green or brownish green; lateral sepals linear-lanceolate, slightly deflexed, obscurely falcate, 2.8–3.5(–4.5) cm. long, to 0.6 cm. wide.. Petals porrect, shorter than sepals. 2.5–3.1 cm. long, to 0.7 cm. wide, greenish with a purple or brown tinge.. Lip ± oblong, trilobed in apical half, 3–3.8 cm. long, 2 cm. wide, creamy with purple-or brown-marked veins; side lobes oblong, rounded or obtuse; mid-lobe much longer than side lobes, ovate, obtuse, ± 0.8 cm. long, reflexed at apex; disc bearing 2 parallel fleshy pubescent keels which terminate at the base of the mid-lobe.. Column arcuate, dilated in apical half, ± winged ventrally towards apex, 1.7–2 cm. long; anther-cap large, noticeably bifid at apex.. Fig. 55/1, p. 274.
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Leaf solitary, appearing after flowering, erect to suberect, large, 6–16 cm long and 3.5–11 cm wide, ovate to almost round, glabrous, pleated; apex obtuse to acute or slightly acuminate; base attenuate to truncate or slightly cordate; veins 6–10; petiole 5.5–17 cm long, sulcate with 1–5 sheathing cataphylls when young.
Lip cream or pale yellow with prominent red or purple venation, (19)24–40 × 22–31 mm, ovate, 3-lobed, bearing 2 parallel fleshy pubescent ridges running from base of lip to base of mid-lobe; side lobes oblong, rounded to obtuse, erect, enclosing the column; mid-lobe ovate, obtuse, reflexed.
Sepals and petals subequal, linear-lanceolate, acute, greenish-yellow with red veins and a general reddish tinge to the outside; lateral sepals slightly oblique, 25–42(45) × 5.2–7.5 mm; petals slightly shorter than sepals.
Column curved, 16–25 mm long, clavate, glabrous; anther front rim with 2 protruding teeth; pollinia yellow, 3.9–5.2 mm; stigmatic surface 5–8 mm in diameter.
Erect terrestrial herb (10)15–44 cm tall, glabrous except for lip and subterranean parts.
Flowers large, more or less secund; bracts 22–31 mm long, linear, setose, acute.
Scape erect, terete, (1)2–3-flowered, with 2–4 sheathing cataphylls.
Tuber 1.5–3 × 1.5–2.8 × 0.8–2 cm, subspherical or ovoid, 4–7-noded.
Capsule 14–19 × 12 mm.
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention -
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.25 - 0.4
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
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Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

Light -
Soil humidity -
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Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 9-12

Usage

Uses -
Edible -
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Mode -
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
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Optimum temperature (C°) -
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Vigor -
Productivity -

Distribution

Nervilia shirensis world distribution map, present in Angola, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Mozambique, Chad, Tanzania, United Republic of, Zambia, and Zimbabwe

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:645534-1
WFO ID wfo-0000251737
COL ID 476MZ
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Nervilia buchananii Nervilia shirensis Pogonia buchananii Pogonia shirensis