Polystachya simplex Rendle

Species

Angiosperms > Asparagales > Orchidaceae > Polystachya

Characteristics

A pendulous epiphytic plant to 50 cm. or more long.. Stems (or pseudobulbs) cylindrical or narrowly fusiform, 3–20 cm. long, 3–9 mm. wide, yellow or purple, superposed, given off from the middle of the previous growth.. Leaves spreading, somewhat undulate, elliptic, oblong or oblanceolate, 5–15 cm. long, 1.5 cm. wide, acute or subacute, nerves prominent.. Inflorescence 3.5–9 cm. long, pubescent, branching or unbranched, shorter than the terminal leaves; bracts narrowly lanceolate, acuminate, 0.4–0.7 cm. long.. Flowers green or yellowish green, tinged with brown or mauve, lip yellow marked with purple.. Dorsal sepal ovate-lanceolate, acute or acuminate, 4.8 mm. long, 2 mm. wide; lateral sepals obliquely ovate-triangular, acuminate, 5.5 mm. long, 3 mm. wide, forming with the column-foot a mentum 2.6 mm. long.. Petals linear or lanceolate, acute, 3.8 mm. long, 1 mm. wide.. Lip shortly clawed, 3-lobed above or at the middle, 5 mm. long, 3.8 mm. wide, ecallose or with a slight fleshy thickening between the side lobes; side lobes erect, elliptic, rounded; mid-lobe ovate or rotund, acuminate or apiculate, 2.3 mm. long, 2.2 mm. wide.. Column terete, 1.2 mm. long.
More
Pseudobulbs superposed, the new ones arising from about the middle of the pseudobulb produced in the previous season, often hanging in long chains; each pseudobulb 3–20 cm × 3–9 mm, fusiform, c. 4-leaved, yellow or purplish.
Lip 5 × 3.8 mm, shortly clawed, 3-lobed at about the middle, ecallose or with a slight thickening between the lobes; mid-lobe 2.3 × 2.2 mm, ± orbicular, acuminate or apiculate; side lobes erect, elliptic or oblong, rounded.
Dorsal sepal 3–4.8 × 2 mm, ovate or lanceolate, acute or acuminate; lateral sepals 5.5–6 × 3 mm, obliquely ovate-triangular, forming a rounded mentum 2.5–3 mm high.
Leaves 5–15 × 0.8–1.5 cm, elliptic, oblong or oblanceolate, glossy green with prominent, often purplish, veins on the underside.
Flowers green or yellow-green with reddish veining, the lip creamy-yellow with a purple mid-line.
Inflorescence (floral axis) 3.5–9 cm long, pubescent, branched or unbranched.
Bracts 4–7 mm long, lanceolate, acuminate.
Petals 3–3.8 × 1 mm, linear or lanceolate.
Pendent, epiphytic herb to c. 50 cm long.
Pedicel and ovary 5 mm long.
Column 1.2 mm long.
Life form perennial
Growth form herb
Growth support epiphyte
Foliage retention -
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.0
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months -
Fruit color -
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

Light -
Soil humidity -
Soil texture -
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°) -
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Distribution

Polystachya simplex world distribution map, present in Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, United Republic of, Uganda, and Zimbabwe

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:654535-1
WFO ID wfo-0000280631
COL ID 4LMD4
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Polystachya aristulifera Polystachya pachyrhiza Polystachya simplex