The beautiful Flickingeria xantholeuca from Indonesia
Flickingeria xantholeuca (Rchb.f.) A.D.Hawkes is a species of orchid in the genus Flickingeria. [2] An epiphytic herb, it is distributed in Pingtung County, Taiwan, China, as well as Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand. The type specimen was collected from Java, Indonesia.
Chinese Name: jian ye jin shi hu
Latin name: Flickingeria xantholeuca (Rchb.f.) A.D.Hawkes
Alternative Name: Pale Yellow Epiphyllum
Kingdom: Plant Kingdom
Division: Angiosperms
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Genus: Dendrobium
Morphological Characteristics
Stems erect or pendulous, up to 30 cm long; pseudobulbs several, with only the terminal pseudobulb swollen, flattened, yellowish-green, bearing a single leaf at the apex; branches arising from internodes below the swollen pseudobulb.
Leaves leathery, ovate or oblong-lanceolate, apex acutely pointed. Inflorescence short, arising from the leaf base, bearing only one flower at a time.
Flowers are very small, approximately 1 cm in diameter, pale yellow-green; sepals and petals are ovate-elliptic or ovate-rhombic, 0.4-0.6 cm long, 0.2-0.4 cm wide; the lip is rhombic, slightly larger than the sepals, 3-lobed, with the median lobe Y-shaped.
Flowering occurs intermittently from April to November, with fruiting throughout the year.
Distribution Range
Indonesia (Java, Kalimantan, Sumatra), Malaysia (Borneo), the Philippines, Thailand, and Pingtung County in Taiwan Province. It grows epiphytically on tree branches or rocks at elevations of 300–500 meters.
