Epidendrum polychlamys Schltr. 1906 GROUP Polychlamys SUBGROUP Polychlamys Type Photo by I Rojas ©

Common Name The Many Mantled Epidendrum [refers to the prominent floral bracts which embrace the ovary and half of the flower]

Flower Size 2.4" [6 cm]

Found in Costa Rica and Panama at elevations between 1100 to 2500 meters as a medium sized, warm to cool growing epiphyte ot terrestrial on roadside banks near the top ridge of the cordillera with simple, thin, terete, arching, cane-like stems arising from the middle of the previous cane and enveloped by tubular, scarious, acute sheaths becoming fibrous with age and carrying 1 to 3, clustered towareds the apex, alternate, articulate, eeliptic, spreading, subacute, coriaceous, entire margined leaves that blooms at most any time of the year on a terminal, occuring only once, racemose, distichous, arching-nutant, densely, successively 5 to 15 flowered inflorescence enveloped completely by 2, ovate, acute, conduplicate, ancipitous bracts and has twice as long as the ovary, also covering half the flower, apically progressively shorter, ovate, acute, conduplicate, ancipitous, spreading floral bracts carrying distichous, resupinate, fragrant flowers

Synonyms

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Repert. Sp. Nov. Regni. Veg. Beih. 19: 43. Costa Rica Schlechter 1923; AOS Bulletin Vol 31 No 3 1962 photo; Icones Planetarum Tropicarum Plate 1325 Atwood 1992 drawing ok; Icones Orchidacearum 3 Plate 381 Hagsater 1999 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 8 Plate 883 Hagsater 2007 see recognition section; Icones Orchidacearum 9 Plate 976 Hagsater 2007 drawing fide;

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------