Habenaria perpulchra Kraenzl. 1914 SECTION Diphyllae
Photos by © Seleck M. and The Copperflora Website
LATER
Common Name The Very Beautiful Habenaria
Flower Size
Found in Zaire, Malawi, Zambia and Tanzania in upland grasslands at elevations of 1300 to 1400 meters as a small to medium sized, cool growing terrestrial with an ovoid to ellipsoid, densely tomentose tuber giving rise to an erct, rather stout stem carrying a single basal, adpressed to the soil, orbicular, ovate-orbicular to reniform-orbicular, obtuse to apiculate, cordate base leaf and 3 to 7 lanceolate, acute, rather loose sheath-like leaves above that blooms in the later summer on an erect, terminal, 1.2 to 2.6" [3 to 7 cm] long, rather close set, 1 to 5 flowered inflorescence with lanceolate, acute, glabrous, shorter than the ovary floral bracts and and carrying white, nearly erect flowers.
Unlike all others in the section Diphyllae H perpulchra has a very wide lip and petal lobes. The lip lobes are .18 to .36" [4.5 to 9 mm] wide, oblong ovate and the petal lobes are .08 to .2" [2 to 5 mm] wide.
Synonyms Arachnaria perpulchra (Kraenzl.) Szlach. 2003; Habenaria platymera Schltr. 1915
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;
* Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 51: 373 Kraenzlin 1914
Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 53: 502 Schlechter 1915 as H platymera
Kew Bull. 12: 109 Summerhayes 1957
Flora of Tropical East Africa Orchidaceae Part 1 Summerhayes 1968;
The Orchids of South Central Africa Williamson 1977;
Flore D'Afrique Centrale [Zaire- Rwands - Burundi] Orhidaceae Premeir parte Geerink 1984;
Flora Zambesiaca Vol 11 Orchidaceae Part 1 Pope 1995;
Richardiana 3: 157 Szlach 2003 as Arachnaria perpulchra
Orchidaceae of West Central Africa Vol 1: 255 Szlatchecko etal 2010 as Arachnaria perpulchra drawing fide
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