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Nervilia crociformis (Zoll. & Moritzi) Seidenf., Dansk Bot. Ark. 32: 151 (1978).
Homotypic Synonyms:
Bolborchis crociformis Zoll. & Moritzi in A.Moritzi, Syst. Verz. Java: 89 (1846).
Heterotypic Synonyms:
Pogonia crispata Blume, Mus. Bot. 1: 32 (1849).
Coelogyne javanica Lindl., Fol. Orchid. 5: 17 (1854).
Pogonia bollei Rchb.f., Xenia Orchid. 2: 88 (1865).
Pogonia prainiana King & Pantl., J. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, Pt. 2, Nat. Hist. 65: 129 (1896).
Nervilia crispata (Blume) Schltr. ex K.Schum. & Lauterb., Fl. Schutzgeb. Südsee: 240 (1900).
Nervilia fimbriata Schltr. in K.M.Schumann & C.A.G.Lauterbach, Fl. Schutzgeb. Südsee, Nachtr.: 82 (1905).
Nervilia bollei (Rchb.f.) Schltr., Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 45: 405 (1911).
Nervilia humilis Schltr., Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 53: 551 (1915).
Nervilia reniformis Schltr., Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 53: 551 (1915).
Nervilia francoisii H.Perrier, Bull. Trimestriel Acad. Malgache, n.s., 21: 304 (1928).
Nervilia monantha Blatt. & McCann, J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 35: 724 (1932).
Nervilia bathiei Senghas, Adansonia, n.s., 4: 303 (1964).
Nervilia erosa P.J.Cribb, Kew Bull. 32: 155 (1977).
Nervilia prainiana (King & Pantl.) Seidenf., Dansk Bot. Ark. 32(2): 149 (1978).
Description:
Erect terrestrial herb 1.5-10 cm tall, glabrous except for lip, leaf and subterranean parts. Tuber subspherical or ovoid, 0.5-1.4 cm diam., (2-)3-6-noded. Leaf solitary, appearing after flowering, prostrate or nearly so, reniform to almost orbicular, usually densely pubescent above, but glabrous clones are not uncommon, nor are ones with hairs only near the rim, 1.5-9 by 3.5-14 cm; veins (5-)7-16; petiole 0-6 cm long, sulcate with 1-3 sheathing cataphylls. Scape erect, terete, 1-flowered, with 2-3 sheathing cataphylls, lengthening to c. 20 cm when fruiting. Rower more or less erect, fragrant; bract 1-2 mm long. Sepals and petals spreading, closing again after about 8 hours anthesis or earlier if pollinated, subequal, linear-ligulate, acute, brownish green, lateral sepals oblique, 12-19 by 3.5 mm; petals slightly shorter and narrower. Lip oblong-cuneate, 12-18 by 9-11 mm, 3-lobed, white with a yellow centre and often faint lilac or purple tinge or markings in the apical area; inner surface more or less covered with thin hairs and a few thicker formations more or less arranged in three rows along the centre of the mid-lobe and ranging from low tubercles to long, acute, tapering emergences of different appearance; lateral lobes obtusely triangular or rounded, sometimes less prominent or absent; midlobe ovate-triangular to ovate, subacute to obtuse; margin crenulate-undulate-fimbriate. Gynostemium almost straight, clavate, glabrous, (5.5-)7-9 mm; pollinia yellow with a few purplish massulae at lower end, (0.8-)1.5-2 mm; ovary 4-5 mm long; capsule (7-)10-17 by c. 5 mm; seeds elongated, curved, (0.15-)0.3-0.4 mm long with one end narrower.
Colours:
Sepals and petals light green, lip pure white.
Habitat:
Woodland, evergreen forest, grassland, riverine forest and pine plantations; 75-2000 m.
Flowering time in the wild:
May, July, August, September, October, November, December.
Notes:
1. There is a wide variation in leaf characters in this species. The leaves are normally quite densely pubescent on the upper surface, but at least around Lake Nyasa totally glabrous forms are not uncommon, nor are intermediate forms with only a few hairs near the rim. The recently discovered populations in Australia are reported to be glabrous. Also several collections from western Madagascar (see Map 14, open circles) have glabrous leaves. In this case also the shape of the blade was aberrant: cordate to broadly reniform, slightly lobed or polygonal; apex triangular with concave sides. Two similar leaves are also found on a Commerson sheet from Mauritius together with Nervilia bicarinata and hairy Nervilia crociformis-like leaves. The size variation within the species is also considerable. The type material of N. erosa has very small leaves with few or no hairs and an erose margin. A small-flowered form from Malawi (specimen Pettersson 317) has leaves with a narrow, purple rim, while a specimen from Madagascar (Barthlott 0-12753, slide only) has the central portion of the upper surface purple.
2. This species is (or was) probably also present on Réunion and Mauritius. Thouars’ type material of Pogonia thouarsii from Mauritius presumably belongs here (see below under Incompletely known species). There are also many Commerson sheets of Nervilia crociformis-like leaves stated to come from Réunion and Mauritius. There is, however, some uncertainty about the labelling of those. There are almost identical sheets with one specimen of Nervilia bicarinata and one or several specimens of smaller, hairy, Nervilia crociformis-like leaves stated to come from Réunion, Mauritius and Madagascar. It seems too much of a coincidence to find the same two species growing together in three different places at great distance from each other, when no other collector has made similar finds.
Cultivation:
Warm growing terrestrial, requires light shade.
Distribution:
Trop. & Subtrop. Old World to SW. Pacific
References:
Orchidaceae of West-central Africa, vol. 1, Gdansk University Press Gdansk 2010; Orchid Monographs S (1991)
Images:
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In culture	In culture	In culture	In culture
Photograph Karl Senghas© Swiss Orchid Foundation at the Herbarium Jany Renz Image used with kind permission.	Photograph Karl Senghas© Swiss Orchid Foundation at the Herbarium Jany Renz Image used with kind permission.	Photograph Karl Senghas© Swiss Orchid Foundation at the Herbarium Jany Renz Image used with kind permission.	Photograph Karl Senghas© Swiss Orchid Foundation at the Herbarium Jany Renz Image used with kind permission.