Species Information - Dipodium pandanum

Dipodium pandanum F.M.Bailey, Queensland Agric. J. 6 (1900) 287, pl. 187 & 188

Type: Brisbane cult. (Armit, coll. Samarai, New Guinea, 1898, leg. Bailey) s.n. (holo BRI)

Synonyms:

• Dipodium pandanum F.M.Bailey var. album J.J.Sm., Nova Guinea 8, 1 (1909) 104, pl. 35, 115
  - Type: Versteeg 1143 (holo BO)
• Dipodium pandanum F.M.Bailey var. pilotaenia Schltr., Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Beih. 1 (1913) 952
  - Type: Schlechter 13922; 14702; 19292 (B, lost)

Terrestrial and scrambling/climbing herbs. Terrestrial phases unknown. Scrambling phase monopodial, stems to at least 90 cm long, leafy throughout, similar to the climbing phase; stem internodes 3—5 cm long. Climbing phase monopodial, stems up to 1000—1200 by 0.7—1.8 cm (without sheaths), slightly compressed, woody, uppermost 300—400 cm with Ieaves; internodes 0.5—3.6 cm long. Leaves suberect to spreading or arching, strap—shaped, tapering, 18—46 by 2.4—6.8 cm; leaf sheaths overlapping, persistent, erect, 9—16 cm; leaf blade at base broadly conduplicate; apex acute; main nerves 3—7. Inflorescences erect, shorter to longer than the leaves, 18—45 cm long; peduncle 9—24 by 0.4—0.6 cm, usually with 3 scale leaves; rachis cylindrical, sometimes angular, 6—25 cm long with up to 35 well spaced outward facing flowers; floral bracts clasping the pedicel, 0.45—0.65 cm long, ovate; apex obtuse to acute. Pedicel and ovary 1.9—4.3 cm long; ovary 0.21—0.28 cm diam., thicker than the pedicel. Flowers large, 3—4.6 by 3—4.2 cm, not fragrant. Median sepal 1.6—2.25 by 0.4—0.95 cm, narrowly oblong to narrowly obovate; apex rounded to obtuse, sometimes shortly acuminate. Lateral sepals 1.6—2.5 by 0.45—0.9 cm, narrowly oblong to narrowly obovate, sometimes subfalcate; apex rounded to obtuse, sometimes shortly acuminate. Petals 1.5—2.3 by 0.38—0.8 cm, obliquely obovate; base a rectangular claw; apex obtuse and shortly acuminate. Lip 3-lobed, 1.45—1.95 by 0.65—0.9 cm when flattened; hypochile shortly saccate, 0.7—0.85 cm long, lateral lobes not extending past the base of the column wing, straight, along outer margin 0.22—0.4 cm long, along inner margin 0.1—0.28 by 0 07—0.09 cm long, oblong, with obtuse apex; basal callus 1, rarely bifid, low to high, hemispherical, usually longitudinally shallowly to deeply grooved, glabrous or with a few scattered short hairs; ridges from laterally alongside the callus, or (rarely) from the sinus at the base of the midlobe claw, tomentose, converging on the base of the epichile; epichile convex to conduplicate, 1.15—1.6 by 0.65—0.9 cm when flattened, its claw rectangular, 0.22—0.35 by 0.18—0.3 cm, its blade elliptic to broad oblong—obovate, with obtuse apex, the spine, the distal part of midlobe and the nose densely hairy, the hairs often long, the flanks hairy, especially along the nerves, the hairs sometimes bristly but usually soft, often low, the nose convex to conduplicate, 0.15—0.25 cm, with triangular, acute, subacute or rounded apex. Column 0.45—0.65 cm abaxially, 0.7—1 cm adaxially, 0.35—0.45 cm wide at the apex; wing and stelidia very variable, frequently a small wing in central to distal third or distal third that is not continuous with a small or large stelid, less frequently with a small or large distal to apical wing with reduced stelidia; basal cavity deep; mound V-shaped, indistinct to prominent, covered in short hairs; rostellum not exceeding the stelidia to considerably exceeding it; anther cucullate, 0.2—0.24 cm, the beak shorter than the body; pollinia ovoid, 0.09—0.11 cm long; stipe V-shaped, 0.12—0.16 cm long, arms oblong to linear, 3—4 x longer than wide; viscidium circular, elliptic or oblong. Fruit ovoid to ellipsoid, c. 4.5 by 2.2 cm, with 3 rounded wings.
(after O'Byrne 2017)

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