Phalaenopsis fuscata Rchb. f. 1874 SUBGENUS Phalaenopsis SECTION Polychilos [Breda] Rchb.f

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Common Name Darkened Phalenopsis - refers to the dark splotches on the lower halves of the sepals and petals

Flower Size 1 1/2" [3.75 cm]

Found in the shady lowland and hill forests of Sumatra, peninsular Malaysia, Borneo and the Philippines? at elevations of sealevel to 1000 meters on trees near streams in shady forests as a small to medium sized, hot to warm growing epiphyte with a stem enveloped completely by imbricate leaf sheaths with a few to several, spreading, deflexed, obovate-oblong, thick acute leaves. This species produces yellow flowers with orange brown barring, and the lip is unusual. The sepals tend to be rolled backwards and are cupped. The orchid flowers in the spring and summer on a lateral, to 18 to 24" [45 to 60 cm] long, racemose or paniculate, many flowered inflorescence with fragrant , waxy flowers that open successively over a long period. The inflorescence has small bracts and 2 to 3 flowers per branch.

Very similar to P kunstleri but differs mainly in the longer column.

Synonyms Phalaenopsis denisiana Cogn. 1899; Polychilos fuscata (Rchb. f.) Shim 1982

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Flora Of Malaya Vol 1 Holttum 1957 drawing fide; The Orchids of Thailand Seidenfaden & Smitinand 1963; Encyclopedia of Cultivated Orchids Hawkes 1965; AOS Bulletin Vol 35 No 1 1966; AOS Bulletin Vol 38 No 6 1969 drawing fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 48 #2 1979 photo fide; The Genus Phalaenopsis Sweet 1980 drawing/photo fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 50 No 8 1981 photo fide; The Complete Writings on Philippine Orchids Vol 2 Quisumbing 1981; Orchidiana Philipiniana Vol 1 Valmayor 1984; Orchid Digest Vol 49 No 5 1985 photo fide; Rudolf Schlechter Die Orchideen Band 1B lieferung 19/20 1129 - 1264 Brieger 1988; Orchid Species Culture "P" Bakers 1991; The Orchids of Penninsular Malaysia and Singapore Seidenfaden & Wood 1992 Drawing fide; The Plants of Mount Kinabalu Vol 2 Orchids Beaman, Wood, Beaman & Beaman 1993 photo fide; Orchids of Borneo Vol 1 Chan, Lamb, Shim & Wood 1994 drawing/photo fide; A Checklist of the Orchids of Borneo Wood & Cribb 1994 drawing/photo fide; Identification of the Orchids [Orchidaceae Juss.] Vietnam Averyanov 1994; Phaleanopsis, A Monograph EA Christenson 2001drawing/photo fide; A to Z of SE Asian Orchid Species O'Byrne 2001 photo fide; Orchids of Sarawak Beeman & Wood 2001 photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 66 #4 2002 photo fide; Flora Malesiana Orchids of the Philippines Vol I Agoo, Shuiteman and de Vogel 2003; The Orchids of Mount Kinabalu Vol 2 Wood, Beaman, Lamb, Chu Lun and Beaman 2011 drawing/photo fide; Orchids of Penninsular Malaysia Ong, O'Byrne, Yong & Saw 2011 photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 77 #4 2013 photo fide; Orchid Digest Vol 83 #4 2019 Photo fide

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