Tridactyle lisowskii (Szlach.) Szlach. & Olszewski, in Fl. Cameroun 36: 716 (2001).
Homotypic Synonyms:
Tridactyle scottellii subsp. lisowskii Szlach., Fragm. Florist. Geobot. 39: 547 (1994).
Description:
Plant with upright or semi-pendent stems, 17110 cm long. Leaves 3-9, linear, leathery and thick, bright green, 11.5 cm long, 1.2 cm wide. Inflorescences 3-5 cm long, 6- to 12-flowered. Flowers yellow or orange, small; dorsal sepal oval-lanceolate to triangular, acute, 5 mm long, 2 mm wide; lateral sepals obliquely lanceolate, oboval, or elliptic-lanceolate, acute, 5-5.2 mm long, 2.5-2.9 mm wide; petals linear, linear-lanceolate to narrowly oblong, acute, margins ciliate, 4-5 mm long, 8-13 mm wide; lip auriculate at the base, the auricles small and very thick, 3-lobed in the apical third, side lobes narrow, spreading, longer than mid-lobe, ciliate along margins and with a few teeth at the apex, mid-lobe small, triangular, in total 4-6 mm long; spur straight, slightly inflated in the lower two thirds, 10-12 mm long.
Etymology:
This species is named after the Polish botanist, Stanislaw Lisowski (1924-2002), who collected plants in several African countries.
Habitat:
Lithophyte on granite rocks, usually in exposed positions; 750-1070 m; flowering November to February.
Cultivation:
As given for the genus, warm growing lithophyte.
Distribution:
WC. Trop. Africa
References:
Angraecoid Orchids Stewart, Hermans and Campbell 2006; 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 21.03.2017
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