Genus Huttonaea

Key to the genus Huttonaea Harv.

1a	Lower leaf with a long petiole; flowers to 10 mm in diameter	Huttonaea fimbriata
1b	Lower leaf sessile; flowers 10-30 mm in diameter	2
2a	Petal claws free from each other; inflorescence usually with more than 5 flowers	3
2b	Petal claws united, at least in lower half; inflorescence with 1-5 flowers	4
3a	Lower leaf 60-120 mm long; forest plants	Huttonaea pulchra
3b	Lower leaf 40-60 mm long; grassland plants	Huttonaea woodii
4a	Flowers less than 18 mm in overall height; petal fringes 24 mm long, petal claws fused in basal part	Huttonaea oreophila
4b	Flowers 20-30 mm in overall height; petal fringes 5-8 mm long, petal claws completely fused	Huttonaea grandiflora

   World Checklist of Monocotyledons. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet; http://www.kew.org/wcsp/monocots/ accessed 02/04/2020

Huttonaea fimbriata (Harv.) Rchb.f., Flora 50: 116 (1867).
Homotypic Synonyms:
Hallackia fimbriata Harv., Thes. Cap. 2: 2 (1863).
Huttonaea hallackii Bolus, J. Linn. Soc., Bot. 19: 339 (1882), nom. illeg.
Description:

An erect slender glabrous herb, 18-30 cm. high; stem weak sub flexuous, distantly bifoliate; leaves cauline spreading cordate ovate acuminate, long petiolate, petiole sheathing, primary nerves 3-5, 4-7 cm. long; spike oblong, rather densely 6-11 flowered, 3-6 cm. long, flowers erect-spreading; bracts lanceolate acuminate, about as long as the ovary; lateral sepals spreading elliptical, very obtuse, shortly unguiculate lacerate-serrulate, adhering to the petals at base, 0,5 cm. long; odd sepal ovate-lanceolate lacerate-serrulate, 0-4 cm. long; petals broadly obovate, saccate towards the base, unguiculate, deeply fimbriate on the margin, 0-5 cm. long; lip spreading--deflexed cuneate-flabelliform, saccate at base, deeply fimbriate, as long as the petals; anther oblong, very obtuse.
Habitat:

At around 1100 meters in elevation.
Cultivation:

Plant grows from cool to cold conditions in shady areas.
Distribution:

E. Cape Prov. to KwaZulu-Natal

Images:
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Botanical Drawing / Herbarium

Photograph copyright Swiss Orchid Foundation at the Herbarium Jany Renz Image used with kind permission.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Huttonaea grandiflora (Schltr.) Rolfe in W.H.Harvey & auct. suc. (eds.), Fl. Cap. 5(3): 114 (1912).
Homotypic Synonyms:
Huttonaea oreophila var. grandiflora Schltr., Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 24: 420 (1897).
Description:
Plant 6–8 in. high, erect, with somewhat slender flexuous stem, distantly 2-leaved; leaves sessile, ovate or cordate-ovate, acute, glabrous, submembranous, 1/2–1 1/4 in. long, 1/3–1 in. broad; raceme very short, 2–4-flowered; bracts ovate, acute, 4–5 lin. long; pedicels about 1/4 in. long; dorsal sepal ovate-oblong, obtuse, fimbriate, 2 lin. long; lateral sepals oblique and very broadly ovate, obtuse, much fimbriate, 3–4 lin. long; petals unguiculate, somewhat diverging, broadly dilated above, deeply and compoundly fimbriate, 5–6 lin. long by about as broad, obtusely saccate at the base of the limb, claws rather shorter than the limb and connate to about the middle; lip with a short broad claw and a much dilated limb, 6–8 lin. broad by nearly as long, deeply and compoundly fimbriate; column strongly incurved, 2 lin. long.
Etymology:
The specific name, grandiflora, means that the flowers are larger than normal. "Normal" here probably means the typical flower size achieved in the (other four) small-flowered members of the genus.
Habitat:
In grasslands on steep slopes or rock crevasses at elevations of 2300 to 2900 meters in full sun.
Flower date:
Flowering happens late in summer and early in autumn
Distribution:
S. Africa (Drakensberg)
References:
Wild Orchids of Southern Africa Stewart, Linder, Schelpe & Hall 1982; Orchids of Southern Africa Linder & Kurzweil 1999; Genera Orchidacearum Vol 2 Part One Pridgeon, Cribb, Chase and Rasmussen 2001
Images:
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Habitat/In situ	Habitat/In situ	Habitat/In situ	Habitat/In situ	Habitat/In situ	Habitat/In situ	Habitat/In situ
Photograph© Cameron McMaster. Image used with kind permission.	Photograph© Cameron McMaster. Image used with kind permission.	Photograph© Cameron McMaster. Image used with kind permission.	Photograph© Cameron McMaster. Image used with kind permission.	Photograph© Cameron McMaster. Image used with kind permission.	Photograph© Cameron McMaster. Image used with kind permission.	Photograph© Cameron McMaster. Image used with kind permission.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Huttonaea pulchra Harv., Thes. Cap. 2: 1 (1863).
Homotypic Synonyms:

Hallackia pulchra (Harv.) Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 665 (1891).
Description:

An erect slender glabrous herb attaining a height of 35 cm.; stem straight or somewhat flexuous, bearing a sheath at the base, distantly 2 leaved, 6-9 fl. at the apex; leaves spreading petiolate, the petiole sheathing, 0,7-4,5 cm. long, ovate acute, cordate at base, primary nerves 5-7, 4,5-9,5 cm. long. 2,5-7 cm. broad bracts ovate-lanceolate long acuminate, as long as or shorter than the ovary; lateral sepals spreading somewhat rhomboidal, obtuse or subacute, entire or more often irregularly serrate, 0,7 cm, long; odd sepal erect ovate, shortly clawed, subacute, 0,5 cm. long; petals erect clawed, the claw 0,3-0,5 cm. long, lamina cucullatefimbriate, 0,5-0,7 cm. long; lip deflexed, flat or concave, orbicular in outline, truncate at base, fimbriate, 0,6 cm. long; anther ovate, very obtuse, the cells diverging towards the base, 0,3 cm. long.
Habitat:
Distribution:

E. Cape Prov. to KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga

Images:
Click on each image to see a larger version.

Botanical Drawing / Herbarium

Photograph copyright Swiss Orchid Foundation at the Herbarium Jany Renz Image used with kind permission.