Lecanorchis

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Lecanorchis
Plant Info
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Liliopsida
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Vanilloideae
Tribe: Vanilleae
Genus: Lecanorchis
Blume

Type Species
Lecanorchis japonica
Blume, Mus. Bot. 2: 188 (1856).
Species
See text.

Lechanorchis is a genus of orchids (family Orchidaceae) belonging to the subfamily Vanilloideae.

The scientific name is derived from the Greek words lekane (basin) and orchis (orchid).

They occur in mountain forest of the Himalayas, tropical and subtropical Asia, New Guinea and some Pacific islands at altitudes between 300 – 1500 m

They are terrestrial, leafless myco-heterotrophs (formerly called saprophytes). They produce numerous, long, thick, horizontal roots under a short rhizome. The erect, dark, branched or unbranched stems are thin and brittle. They bear few to many dull brown, purple, yellow or green flowers with a somewhat brighter lip. The lip is about of equal length to the sepals and is covered with dense, yellow hair.

Characteristic for this species is:

  • the presence of a calyculus, a group of cup-like small bracts.
  • the erect gynostemium (the fused stamen and pistil) is elongate.

Species

Lecanorchis Blume (1956).

References

  • Orchid Research Newsletter 47 (January 2006) - Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew.
  • Dariusz L. Szlachetko & Joanna Mytnik - Lecanorchis seidenfadeni (Orchidaceae, Vanilloideae), a new orchid species from Malaya ; An.Bot.Fennici 37;227-230 (on line : [1])