Jumellea walleri (Rolfe) la Croix, Bot. Mag. 17: 214 (2000).
Homotypic Synonyms:
Mystacidium walleri Rolfe in D.Oliver & auct. suc. (eds.), Fl. Trop. Afr. 7: 172 (1897).
Heterotypic Synonyms:
Angraecum filicornoides De Wild., Pl. Nov. Horti Then. 1: t. 21 (1904).
Jumellea filicornoides (De Wild.) Schltr., Beih. Bot. Centralbl. 36(2): 152 (1918).
Description:
Epiphytic or lithophytic herbs, forming large clumps. Stems woody, usually erect, 20–30(40) cm long, leafy towards the apex, the lower part covered with old leaf bases. Roots 3–4 mm in diameter. Leaves 6–16, distichous, held at an angle of c. 45° to the main stem, 4–11 × 1–1.3 cm, ligulate, slightly folded, obtusely 2-lobed at apex, thick and coriaceous, dark green. Inflorescences single-flowered; flowers c. 5 cm in diameter, glistening white, turning apricot-coloured as they fade, with a strong, sweet, violet-like scent. Pedicel and ovary c. 4 cm long, often S-shaped. Sepals 13–22 × 3–4 mm, lanceolate; dorsal sepal erect or recurved; lateral sepals deflexed. Petals 12–20 × 2–3 mm, narrowly lanceolate. Lip 16–25 × 5–7 mm, rhombic from a narrow base, somewhat folded, carinate towards the base; spur 2–3 cm long, filiform, bent at the base. Column 2 mm long with 2 stelidia 1 mm long.
Habitat:
Riverine forest and high rainfall woodland, epiphytic or occasionally on rocks 350–1700 m.
Cultivation:
Jumellea walleri grows well in an intermediate greenhouse, either mounted on a slab of cork or in a pot in a medium bark mix. In the wild, it is predominantly a plant of high-rainfall Brachystegia woodland, forming large clumps usually on trunks and lower branches. Although rainfall in Malawi is seasonal, in the places where this species grows (the tea and coffee-growing areas) there is always some 'out of season' rain, often just mist or drizzle, but enough to stop epiphytic orchids from drying out too severely. In a greenhouse, J. walleri grows better where the humidity is fairly high, particularly when it is actively growing; this is even more important for mounted plants. However, like most epiphytic orchids with thick roots, potted plants are intolerant of a compost that remains too wet. Plants flower well in cultivation, sometimes more than once a year and although the inflorescences each bear only a single flower the effect of starry white flowers dotted amongst the dark green leaves is very attractive. As in species of Cyrtorchis, the flowers turn a pale apricot as they age.
Distribution:
Kenya to S. Africa
References:
Wild Orchids of Southern Africa Stewart, Linder, Schelpe & Hall; AOS Bulletin No 63 No 9 1994; Flora of Tropical East Africa Orchidaceae Part 3 Cribb 1989; Flora Zambesiaca Vol 11 Part 2 Pope 1998; Angraecoid Orchids Stewart, Hermans, Campbell 2006; Field Guide to the Orchids of Northern South Africa and Swaziland McMurty, Grobler, Grobler & Burns 2008; WCSP (2017). 'World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. 19.02-2017; http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
Images:
Click on each image to see a larger version.
| Habitat/In situ | Habitat/In situ | Habitat/In situ | Habitat/In situ | Habitat/In situ |
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| Photograph©Bart Wursten. Image used with kind permission. | Photograph©Bart Wursten. Image used with kind permission. | Photograph©Bart Wursten. Image used with kind permission. | Photograph©Bart Wursten. Image used with kind permission. | Photograph©Bart Wursten. Image used with kind permission. |
| In culture | In culture | In culture |
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| Photograph©Rogier van Vugt. Image used with kind permission. | Photograph©Rogier van Vugt. Image used with kind permission. | Photograph©Rogier van Vugt. Image used with kind permission. |
