ORCHIDACEAE
Cephalanthera Rich. Mém. Mus. Hist. Nat. 4: 51 (1818)
By: Lokesh R. Shakya
Taxon Description
Plants sympodial, terrestrial. Rhizome woody, with numerous roots. Stem erect, sometimes flexuous, leafy, base sheathing. Leaves cauline, alternate, sessile, plicate, sheathing at base. Inflorescence terminal, racemose, densely flowered. Flowers bracteate, sub-erect, white or pink. Sepals and petals subsimilar, free, connivent. Lip shorter than sepals and petals, adnate to base of column, hypochile concave or saccate and embracing column; epichile, short, recurved, with longitudinal ridges. Column long, erect, pollinia 2, clavate, mealy, lacking caudicle and viscidia.
Taxon Statistics
Worldwide about 14 species, distributed in N Africa Temp. Eurasia to indo-china, West N America. Two species in Nepal.
Key to Species
1a Leaves ovate to ovate-lanceolate. Lip ca. 5 mm; hypochile spurred, epichile broadly ovate …………………………………………………………………………………….1. C. erecta
b Leaves lanceolate to linear-lanceolate. Lip ca. 9 mm; hypochile spurless, epichile broadly triangular………………………………………………………………….2. C. longifolia
1. Cephlanthera erecta (Thunb.) Blume, Coll. Orchid.: 188 (1859).
Serapias erecta Thunb. in Murray, Syst. Veg., ed. 14: 816 (1784).
Plants 18–30 cm tall. Rhizome with adventitious roots; root cylindrical, tuberous. Stem erect, leafy, with 1-3 basal sheaths. Leaves ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 2–7 X 1.5–2 cm, acute, sheathing. Inflorescence 3–7 cm, subdensely 3 to 10-flowered, terminal. Sterile bracts absent. Fertile bract lanceolate, 2–3 mm, shorter than pedicel and ovary. Flowers 0.7–0.9 cm across, semi-open; white. Dorsal sepal oblanceolate, 10 X 2 mm, acute, 3-veined. Lateral sepals lanceolate, 9–12 X 2 mm, subacute, 3-veined. Petals oblanceolate, 9–10 X 1.5–2 mm, obtuse, 3-veined. Lip ca. 5 mm, 3-lobed, 2-partite; hypochile saccate, spurred, lobes erect, embracing column; epichile broadly ovate, acute (peloric form: simple, oblanceolate, spurless). Column ca. 3.5 mm, terete, erect.
Distribution: Nepal, E Himalaya, S E Asia.
Altitudinal range: 2000–2300 m.
Ecology: Terrestrial on humus-rich soil in broadleaved forest.
Flowering: April–June.
2. Cephalanthera longifolia (L.) Fritch, Oesterr. Bot. Z. 38: 81 (1888).
Serapias helleborine var. longifolia L., Sp. Pl.: 950 (1753).
Plants 23–50 cm tall. Rhizome with dense adventitious roots; roots clustered. Stem erect, leafy, with 1-3 basal sheaths. Leaves lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, 5.5—8.0 X 0.5-1.7 cm, acuminate, fresh green. Inflorescence 4–8 cm, subdensely up to 20-flowered, terminal. Sterile bracts 1 or 2, leaf-like. Fertile bract ovate-lanceolate, ca. 3 mm, shorter than pedicel and ovary. Flowers ca. 1.5 cm across, semi-open; white with a small orange patch on the hypochile. Dorsal sepal ovate-lanceolate, 10–12 X 3.5–4 mm, acute, 5-veined. Lateral sepals ovate-lanceolate, 15 X 3.2 mm, acute, 5-veined. Petals linear, 15 X 2 mm, acute, 4-veined. Lip ca. 9 mm, 3-lobed, 2-partite; hypochile saccate, spurless, lobes erect, embracing column; epichile broadly triangular, acute. Column ca. 7 mm, terete, erect.
Distribution: Nepal, India, W Himalaya and SW Asia.
Altitudinal range: 2600 – 3300 m.
Ecology: Terrestrial on forest floor in Pinus-Picea and Quercus-Pinus forest.
Flowering: May- -July