Oncidium praetextum Morr. 1873 SECTION Crispa

View Showing Whitch's Nose Photo courtesy of Jay Pfahl

to Southern Hemisphere

Common Name The Purple Seamed Oncidium

Flower Size about 1 1/2" [3.75 cm]

Found in Brazil in the cool mountain ranges of Espiritu Santo, Sao Paulo and Rio states as a medium sized, cool to warm growing epiphyte with clustered, oblong to elliptic, laterally compressed pseudobulbs carrying 2 apical, leathery, lanceolate, obtuse leaves that blooms in the fall in the southern hemisphere on a basal to 48" [122 cm] long, arching, paniculate inflorescence with many fragrant flowers that has 1 to 4 branches each carrying 3 to 6 flowers. It differs from Onc. crispum and O gardneri by having a "witch's nose" on the Lip.

The O crispum complex includes O praetextum, O curtum, O enderianum and O gravesianum, and all are now referenced as synonyms of Oncidium crispum.

Synonyms Anettea praetexta (Rchb.f.) Szlach. & Mytnik 2006; Brasilidium praetextum (Rchb.f.) Campacci 2006; Gomesa praetexta (Rchb.f.) M.W.Chase & N.H.Williams 2009; Oncidium enderianum hort. 1892

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Encyclopedia of Cultivated Orchids Hawkes 1965; AOS Bulletin Vol 47 No 6 1978 drawing; Orchid Digest Vol 44 No 4 1980 photo fide; The Pictoral Encyclopedia of Oncidium Zelenko 2002; Oncidium Vol 1 Koniger 2004; AOS Bulletin Vol 75 No 9 2006 photo; Orchid Species Culture: Oncidium, Bakers 2006; Orchids of Brazil Vol 1 Oncidinae Baptista, Harding & Neto 2011 as Brasilidium crispum photo fide

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