Orchidaceae
Polystachya

Polystachya tenuissima Kraenzl.

First published in Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 19: 250 (1894)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is W. Tropical Africa to Uganda and N. Tanzania. It is a pseudobulbous epiphyte and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome.

Descriptions

Orchidaceae, V. S. Summerhayes. Flora of West Tropical Africa 3:1. 1968

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers pale yellow.
[FWTA]

Orchidaceae, V. S. Summerhayes. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1968

Morphology General Habit
An epiphytic herb, 5–21 cm. high.
Vegetative Multiplication Pseudobulbs
Pseudobulbs tightly clustered, from a short creeping rhizome, narrowly cylindric, 0.7–5.7 cm. long, 0.6–2.5 mm. broad, clothed in 3–4 membranous sheaths, ± articulated on basal half.
Morphology Leaves
Leaf more or less fleshy, subterete to flat, linear, cuneate below, retuse or obtuse at apex, 2–14.5 cm. long, 2–7 mm. broad, articulated 1–2 mm. above the pseudobulb apex.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence about as long as the leaf, a 2–6-branched secund raceme, 2.8–15.5 cm. long, up to 40-flowered; peduncle stout, 0.5–13.3 cm. long, bearing 1–4 short membranous sheaths, the lowermost 1–several mm. above the base; bracts triangular, amplexicaul, mostly apiculate, 0.4–2 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers yellow to yellow- green; column, side lobes of lip and mentum tinged purple.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Dorsal sepal elliptic to ovate- triangular, concave, shortly apiculate, 1.5–3.5 mm. long, 0.7–2.2 mm. broad; lateral sepals obliquely triangular, 2–4.5 mm. long, 2–6 mm. broad; mentum subcylindric, up to 5 mm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Petals narrowly oblong-lanceolate to linear, subacute, 1.7–3 mm. long, 0.6–1.6 mm. broad.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Labellum
Lip strongly recurved, distinctly clawed, distinctly 3-lobed in the apical third, 2.5–6.5 mm. long, 1.7–4 mm. broad; side lobes erect, oblong to ovate, rounded or obtuse; mid-lobe rounded-subquadrate, fleshy, 0.7–2.4 mm. long, 0.8–2 mm. broad; callus obscure, fleshy, at base of mid-lobe.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Column
Column subterete, 0.3–1 mm. long; foot 2.5 mm. long; pollinia ovoid.
Habitat
Rain-forest and woodland; 900–2300 m.
Distribution
K3 K5 K6 T2 U2 U4
[FTEA]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Orchidaceae, V. S. Summerhayes. Flora of West Tropical Africa 3:1. 1968

Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers yellow or greenish-yellow marked with purple or brown, or almost entirely purplish.
[FWTA]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of West Tropical Africa

    • Flora of West Tropical Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0