Epidendrum physodes Rchb.f. 1873 GROUP Physinga Photos by © Karremans, Used under permission of Epidendra Website CR

Inflorescence Photo courtesy of Patricia Harding

Common Name The Bellow-Like Epidendrum

Flower Size .6" [1.5cm]

Found in Guatemala, Costa Rica and Panama at elevations of 1400 to 2100 meters as a small sized, warm to cool growing epiphyte with simple, cane-like, basally terete, laterally compressed above, erect to prostrate, straight stems carrying9 to 11 evenly distributed along the stem, alternate, articulate, lanceolate, long-acuminate, minutely apiculate, fleshy-succulent, gray-green above, purple tinged below, margin entire leaves that blooms in the fall on a terminal, racemose, producing more than one over time, flowering over several years, laxly 3 to 12 per raceme to 50 flowered overall, laterally compressed, straight to slightly sinuous, terete inflorescence with 5 to 8, tubular, acuminate bracts and shorter than the ovary, widely infundibular floral bracts and carrying successively single per racemse, nocturnally fragrant flowers of calcium hydrochloride.

This species and Epidendrum macroclinium are said to be synomonous but I feel that there are several differences that ensure separation so I do.

Synonyms Physinga physodes (Rchb. f.) Brieger 1977; Physinga physodes (Rchb.f.) Brieger & Bicalho 1978

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Lankester's Epidendra Website CR ; Icones Planetarum Tropicarum plate 1074 Dodson 1984 as Physinga physodes; Icones Planetarum Tropicarum plate 1526 Dodson 1984 See Notes; Icones Orchidacearum 4 Plate 464 Hagsater & Sanchez 2001 see recognition section; Vanishing Beauty; Native Costa Rican Orchids Vol 1 Pupulin 2005; Icones Orchidacearum Vol 11 Plate 1159 Hagsater & Sanchez 2008; Icones Orchidacearum Vol 11 Plate 1184 Hagsater & Sanchez 2008 see recognition section

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