Orchids of New Guinea

Dendrobium danipense

Dendrobium danipense Ormerod, Malesian Orchid J. 13 (2014) 51.

Type: Schlechter 19209 (holo B, lost).

Synonyms:

Cadetia lucida Schltr., Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. Beih. 1 (1912) 433; 21 (1923) t. 150
Dendrobium lucidum (Schltr.) J.J.Sm., Bull. Jard. Bot. Buitenzorg, sér. 2, 8 (1912) 18 (non Schltr.).

Rhizome short. Stems crowded, erect, slender, obscurely 4-angled, 3.5-6 cm long, at apex to 2.5 mm diameter, 1-leaved. Leaves erect to suberect, ligulate-oblong, 4-5.5 by 1.3-1.8 cm, coriaceous, shiny, base rounded, apex obtuse, minutely bilobulate. Inflorescences terminal from the leaf axil, 1-flowered, spathe elliptic, 0.7 cm long. Pedicel and ovary 1 cm long, 6-ribbed. Flower resupinated, c. 0.9 cm across. Dorsal sepal oblong, 0.45 cm long, apex narrowly obtuse. Lateral sepals obliquely broadly elliptic, mentum cylindrical-conical, 2.5 mm long, obtuse. Petals subfalcate, linear, 0.45 cm long, at base long decurrent on the column-foot, apex obtuse. Lip clawed, 3-lobed in basal third of the blade, 0.35 by 0.4 cm (excluding the claw), claw linear-ligulate, 2.5 mm long, adnate to the column-foot, minutely pubescent inside at the base, on the disc at its base minutely pubescent; lateral lobes obliquely oblong, obtuse; midlobe much larger, reniform, when flattened clearly extending sideways beyond the lateral lobes, apex retuse, apiculate. Column short, in front minutely pubescent, stelidia obtuse, a little longer than the triangular, tooth-like filament; column-foot 0.25 cm long.
(after Schlechter, 1912).

Colours:

Flower white, midlobe of the lip yellow, anther with a red spot.

Habitat:

Epiphyte in lowland rainforest. Altitude c. 100 m.

Distribution:

New Guinea (endemic).

Distribution New Guinea:

Papua New Guinea (East Sepik and Madang Provinces).

Map: Dendrobium danipense Ormerod, distribution map.

Cultivation:

Warm growing epiphyte.

Flowering time in the wild:

January, March.

Notes:

In Dendrobium sect Cadetia subsect. Pterocadetia the species Dendrobium danipense, Cadetia subfalcata and Cadetia takadui are quite similar in their flowers. They differ that in Dendrobium danipense the mentum is relatively short, the hypochile inside and the base of the epichile are minutely hairy and the epichile has no keels, in Dendrobium subfalcatum J.J.Sm. the mentum is relatively short, the hypochile inside has longitudinal hairy bands and the epichile has in the basal part 5 short thick keels and in Dendrobium takadui the mentum is relatively long and acute, the hypochile is inside glabrous and has two short parallel lamellae, and the epichile has no keels