Zygopetalum graminifolia

[Stone]

Who can tell me about this plant? Altitude, climate etc. Not much on the web at all. I got one at our yearly auction last night but I don't know what to do with it.

 

[gonewild]

Grows epiphytic on tree ferns naturally. From warm climate in Brazil.

 

[Stone]

Epiphytic.....you sure?

 

[gonewild]

Yes, sure. It comes from the tree fern forests of eastern Brazil. It is one of the species used to create warm tolerant zygo hybrids. Some where I have a link to some of the original description that mentions the growing habit.

 

[naoki]

I don't know anything about this group, but you don't get much hit in google with the misspell (it should be Z. graminifoliUM). But there aren't so much info, neither. According to this old literature, Lance is right; growing on tree fern is reported (it is unlikely that they have thoroughly studied the habitat, and it may be based on only a few observations):

http://books.google.com/books?id=Bh...v=onepage&q=Zygopetalum graminifolium&f=false

The distribution map here shows that they are from São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais, Espirio Santo: http://e-monocot.org/taxon/urn:kew.org:wcs:taxon:216059, but actually the text says that it is from São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. The text seems to be more consistent with the data in this web page: http://www.delfinadearaujo.com/estados/brasil.htm You can click each state to see the list of orchids in each state.

But my understanding is that the habitat around this region could be somewhat variable from atlantic rain forest to seasonally drier area (e.g., rupicolous laelias). According to Hawkes Encyclopaedia of Cultivated Orchids, it is intermediate to hot, but no other interesting info like elevation. He uses 3 categories, C, I, and H, where the daily low temp defines them: C=45-50F, I=55-65F, H=65-70F.

 

[Stone]

I wonder why there so little info on this sp?? Jay's has it as a synonym of Z. crinitum. But that's not correct as I have crinitum and it's completely different. I knew Z. maxillare grew on treeferns (I've never had luck with that one) but that is interesting if this one does as well! The grower it came from said he could not flower it and thought it needed more heat than he could provide (min of 8C) so I'll try it?? Leaves are very long and quite thin were as crinitum's are short 1/3 the size.

 

[gonewild]

Read this news clipping archived with the botanical specimen at KEW:
http://apps.kew.org/herbcat/getImage.do?imageBarcode=K000589009

The species was collected growing on stems of a fern.
The fern species needs warm temperature to grow so there is little doubt that the Zygo also is adapted to a warm temperature requirement.

Aside from that from personal experience I used to grow the species warm with Phals as opposed to Z.mackayii which survives outdoors through the winter.

 

[Stone]

Thanks Lance that helps a lot. Mine doesn't appear to have a creeping rhizome though

 

[gonewild]

Rhizome length may be effected by how the plant is growing.
Is yours mounted or in a pot?
If it's in a pot basically growing on a flat surface there would be less reason to produce an extended rhizome compared to growing on the side of a tree..... just a guess.
Or perhaps the rhizome has been shortened by selective breeding.
But then it may need to have the rhizome to fit the species description, in which case ID could be in question? Need to see it bloom!
Post some pics of it.

 

[Stone]

Image shack won't let me post pics at the moment. I think I need to update something. But its a pretty crappy looking thing at the moment with most leaves bent over at the base.