Platanthera superantha (J.J.Wood) X.H.Jin, Schuit., Raskoti & Lu Q.Huang 2015

TYPE Drawing by © Ms E Catherine and Kew Bulletin Vol 41 #4 Notes on Asiatic and New Guinea Orchidaceae J J Wood 1986 as Peristylus supernathus

Common Name The Flower Above Platanthera [refers to the non resupinate flower]

Flower Size .32" [8 mm]

Found in Nepal, The eastern Himalayas, and Yunnan province of China in alpine meadows and Rhododendron forests at elevations of 3050 to 3350 meters as a miniature to small sized, cold growing terrestrial with entire to 2 to 3 lobed, cylindric tubers giving rise to an erect, slender stem with a basal tubular sheath and carrying 3 to 4, narrowly elliptic, oblong-elliptic to ovate, obtuse to acute, getting smaller and grading into bracts up the stem, sessile, basally clasping leaves that blooms in the summer on a terminal, erect, cylindric, rachis .4 to 1" [1 to 2.5 cm] long, densely few to many flowered inflorescence with ovate-elliptic to linear, acute, longer than the ovary floral bracts and carrying non resupinate, uniformly white to pale pink flowers.

"Similar to P nematocaulon but distinct in the flowers with the upper lip, the inflorescence being larger than in P. nematocaulon." J J Wood 1986

Synonyms *Peristylus superanthus J.J.Wood 1986

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ;

Roy. Bot. Gard. Calcutta 8: 316 King & Pantling 1898 drawing only

* Kew Bulletin Vol 41 #4:811 Notes on Asiatic and New Guinea Orchidaceae J J Wood 1986 as Peristylus supernathus Drawing fide

Orchids of Bhutan Pearce & Cribb 2002 as Peristylus superanthus;

*Cladistics 32: 210 X.H.Jin, Schuit., Raskoti & Lu Q.Huang2015

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