Trichocentrum
Encyclopedia
Trichocentrum, often abbreviated Trctm in horticulture
, is a genus
in the orchid family
, Orchidaceae. It was described by Stephan Ladislaus Endlicher
and Eduard Friedrich Poeppig
in 1836; the type species
is the Long-spurred Trichocentrum (T. pulchrum). This genus alone makes up the monogeneric Trichocentrum alliance, a quite distinct lineage of the subtribe Oncidiinae
The 65 or so epiphytic
species
are distributed in damp forests from Mexico
to South America
, but mostly in Venezuela
, Colombia
, Ecuador
and Peru
as well as southern Central America
.
s are reduced. The obtuse, fleshy leaves
are 9 cm long. They are broadly elliptic to ovate-lanceolate.
The large, showy flower
s grow basally on a short peduncle
in a single-flowered to few-flowered raceme
. They are white, or white covered with maroon dots. The petal
s and sepal
s are similar.
The long lip
carries a short spur
. This feature distinguishes the genus from other Oncidiinae
, in which the spur is an extension of the column
. The short column has a pair of apical wings on the stigma. The anther often bears minute papillae. There are two waxy pollinia
, connected to elongate stipe
s.
In cultivation they are subject to rot unless provided with conditions similar to those they experience in the wild. Extensive research into the ecological profiles of individual species may be required to achieve success cultivating them. Many species from Central America apparently endure a prolonged drought for at least part of the year, and have developed succulent leaves to deal with these conditions. Plants may shrivel quite severely without long-lasting injury.
to Trichocentrum. Morphological characteristics of "typical" trichocentrums, such as being relatively small and squat with a short, few-to-several flowered inflorescence, contrasts sharply with the larger, heavier oncidiums with long, "mule-ear" leaves and showy, branched inflorescences with many flowers, or the "rat-tail" species with terete leaves.
While studies of molecular phylogeny
has caused substantial reclassifications, it is uncertain whether this new scheme will be widely adopted. Like with many plants, hybridisation might heavily confound cladistic analyses, though the exact extent is unknown. Hybridisation of Trichocentrum with Oncidium has resulted in the hybrid genus ×Trichocidium for example, and similar events in the past would result in unrealistic assessments of relationship based on molecular phylogenetic studies with too limited a scope.
Horticulture
Horticulture is the industry and science of plant cultivation including the process of preparing soil for the planting of seeds, tubers, or cuttings. Horticulturists work and conduct research in the disciplines of plant propagation and cultivation, crop production, plant breeding and genetic...
, is a genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
in the orchid family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
, Orchidaceae. It was described by Stephan Ladislaus Endlicher
Stephan Ladislaus Endlicher
Stephan Ladislaus Endlicher was an Austrian botanist, numismatist and Sinologist. He was a director of the Botanical Garden of Vienna. He was born in Pressburg and died in Vienna....
and Eduard Friedrich Poeppig
Eduard Friedrich Poeppig
Eduard Friedrich Poeppig was a German botanist, zoologist and explorer.-Biography:He was born in Plauen, Saxony. He studied medicine and natural history at the University of Leipzig, graduating with a medical degree. On graduation, the rector of the university gave him a botanical mission to North...
in 1836; the type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
is the Long-spurred Trichocentrum (T. pulchrum). This genus alone makes up the monogeneric Trichocentrum alliance, a quite distinct lineage of the subtribe Oncidiinae
Oncidiinae
The Oncidiinae is a subtribe within the Orchidaceae that consists of a number of genera that are closely related.This subtribe consists of about 70 genera with over 1000 species, with Oncidium as its largest genus. These genera consist of a single floral type based on the angle of the attachment of...
The 65 or so epiphytic
Epiphyte
An epiphyte is a plant that grows upon another plant non-parasitically or sometimes upon some other object , derives its moisture and nutrients from the air and rain and sometimes from debris accumulating around it, and is found in the temperate zone and in the...
species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
are distributed in damp forests from Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
to South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, but mostly in Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
, Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
and Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
as well as southern Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
.
Description
The pseudobulbPseudobulb
The pseudobulb is a storage organ derived from the part of a stem between two leaf nodes.It applies to the orchid family , specifically certain groups of epiphytic orchids, and may be single or composed of several internodes with evergreen or deciduous leaves along its length.In some species, it is...
s are reduced. The obtuse, fleshy leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
are 9 cm long. They are broadly elliptic to ovate-lanceolate.
The large, showy flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s grow basally on a short peduncle
Peduncle (botany)
In botany, a peduncle is a stem supporting an inflorescence, or after fecundation, an infructescence.The peduncle is a stem, usually green and without leaves, though sometimes colored or supporting small leaves...
in a single-flowered to few-flowered raceme
Raceme
A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...
. They are white, or white covered with maroon dots. The petal
Petal
Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They often are brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. Together, all of the petals of a flower are called a corolla. Petals are usually accompanied by another set of special leaves called sepals lying...
s and sepal
Sepal
A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Collectively the sepals form the calyx, which is the outermost whorl of parts that form a flower. Usually green, sepals have the typical function of protecting the petals when the flower is in bud...
s are similar.
The long lip
Labellum
Labellum is the Latin diminutive of labium, meaning lip. These are anatomical terms used descriptively in biology, for example in Entomology and botany.-Botany:...
carries a short spur
Spur
A spur is a metal tool designed to be worn in pairs on the heels of riding boots for the purpose of directing a horse to move forward or laterally while riding. It is usually used to refine the riding aids and to back up the natural aids . The spur is used in every equestrian discipline...
. This feature distinguishes the genus from other Oncidiinae
Oncidiinae
The Oncidiinae is a subtribe within the Orchidaceae that consists of a number of genera that are closely related.This subtribe consists of about 70 genera with over 1000 species, with Oncidium as its largest genus. These genera consist of a single floral type based on the angle of the attachment of...
, in which the spur is an extension of the column
Column (botany)
The column, or technically the gynostemium, is a reproductive structure that can be found in several plant families: Aristolochiaceae, Orchidaceae, and Stylidiaceae....
. The short column has a pair of apical wings on the stigma. The anther often bears minute papillae. There are two waxy pollinia
Pollinium
Pollinium, or plural pollinia, is a coherent mass of pollen grains in a plant.They are the product of only one anther, but are transferred, during pollination, as a single unit. This is regularly seen in plants such as orchids and many species of milkweeds .Most orchids have waxy pollinia...
, connected to elongate stipe
Stipe (botany)
In botany, a stipe is a stalk that supports some other structure. The precise meaning is different depending on which taxonomic group is being described....
s.
In horticulture
Trichocentrum species are highly appreciated by orchid growers; some consider them to be among the most beautiful orchids on earth. Culture of members of this genus is highly variable, ranging from the drought-tolerant and easy-to-grow Tiger-like Trichocentrum (T. tigrinum) to smaller and more delicate species.In cultivation they are subject to rot unless provided with conditions similar to those they experience in the wild. Extensive research into the ecological profiles of individual species may be required to achieve success cultivating them. Many species from Central America apparently endure a prolonged drought for at least part of the year, and have developed succulent leaves to deal with these conditions. Plants may shrivel quite severely without long-lasting injury.
Systematics
There is disagreement as to the taxonomic status of some species that have recently been moved from OncidiumOncidium
Oncidium, abbreviated as Onc. in the horticultural trade, is a genus that contains about 330 species of orchids from the subtribe Oncidiinae of the orchid family . This is a complex, difficult genus, with many species being reclassified...
to Trichocentrum. Morphological characteristics of "typical" trichocentrums, such as being relatively small and squat with a short, few-to-several flowered inflorescence, contrasts sharply with the larger, heavier oncidiums with long, "mule-ear" leaves and showy, branched inflorescences with many flowers, or the "rat-tail" species with terete leaves.
While studies of molecular phylogeny
Molecular phylogeny
Molecular phylogenetics is the analysis of hereditary molecular differences, mainly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. The result of a molecular phylogenetic analysis is expressed in a phylogenetic tree...
has caused substantial reclassifications, it is uncertain whether this new scheme will be widely adopted. Like with many plants, hybridisation might heavily confound cladistic analyses, though the exact extent is unknown. Hybridisation of Trichocentrum with Oncidium has resulted in the hybrid genus ×Trichocidium for example, and similar events in the past would result in unrealistic assessments of relationship based on molecular phylogenetic studies with too limited a scope.
Species
- Trichocentrum aguirrei (Colombia)
- Trichocentrum albococcineum – White-scarlet Trichocentrum (N Brazil to Peru)
- Trichocentrum ascendens (Mexico to W South America)
- Trichocentrum aurisasinorum (Central America)
- Trichocentrum bicallosumTrichocentrum bicallosumTrichocentrum bicallosum is a species of orchid found from Mexico to Central America....
(Oaxaca, Chiapas to Central America) - Trichocentrum brachyceras (Colombia)
- Trichocentrum brevicalcaratum (Peru)
- Trichocentrum caloceras (Costa Rica)
- Trichocentrum candidum – White Trichocentrum (Veracruz to Chiapas to Central America)
- Trichocentrum capistratum – Halter Trichocentrum (Costa Rica to Venezuela)
- Trichocentrum carthagenenseTrichocentrum carthagenenseTrichocentrum carthagenense is a species of orchid found from the Caribbean and Mexico to northern Brazil....
(Caribbean, Mexico to N Brazil) - Trichocentrum cavendishianumTrichocentrum cavendishianumTrichocentrum cavendishianum is a species of orchid found from Mexico to Central America....
(Mexico to Central America) - Trichocentrum cebolleta (S Caribbean, Mexico to NE Argentina)
- Trichocentrum costaricense (Costa Rica)
- Trichocentrum cymbiglossum (Costa Rica)
- Trichocentrum dianthum Pupulin & Mora-Retana (Costa Rica)
- Trichocentrum estrellense (Costa Rica)
- Trichocentrum flavovirens (SW Mexico)
- Trichocentrum fuscumTrichocentrum fuscumTrichocentrum fuscum, commonly known as the Dark Trichocentrum, is a species of orchid found from Mexico to Central America....
– Dark Trichocentrum (S Tropical America) - Trichocentrum haematochilum (Trinidad)
- Trichocentrum hartii (Venezuela)
- Trichocentrum hoegei (Mexico: Veracruz, Guerrero, Oaxaca)
- Trichocentrum ionopthalmum (N Brazil)
- Trichocentrum johnii (Mexico)
- Trichocentrum jonesianum (Bolivia and Brazil to NE Argentina)
- Trichocentrum lacerumTrichocentrum lacerumTrichocentrum lacerum is a species of orchid found from Central America to Colombia....
(C. America to Colombia) - Trichocentrum lanceanumTrichocentrum lanceanumTrichocentrum lanceanum is a species of orchid found from Trinidad to southern tropical America....
(Trinidad to S Tropical America) - Trichocentrum leeanum (Colombia)
- Trichocentrum lindenii (Mexico to Guatemala)
- Trichocentrum longicalcaratum Rolfe
- Trichocentrum lowii (Guatemala)
- Trichocentrum luridumTrichocentrum luridumTrichocentrum luridum is a species of orchid found from Mexico to northern South America....
(Mexico to N South America) - Trichocentrum margalegfii (SW Mexico)
- Trichocentrum × marvraganii (T. jonesianum × T. straceyi) (Bolivia)
- Trichocentrum mattogrossense (Brazil: Mato Grosso)
- Trichocentrum microchilumTrichocentrum microchilumTrichocentrum microchilum is a species of orchid found from Mexico to El Salvador....
(Mexico: Chiapas to El Salvador) - Trichocentrum morenoi (Peru to Bolivia)
- Trichocentrum nanum (S Tropical America)
- Trichocentrum neudeckeri (Bolivia)
- Trichocentrum nudum (Panama to Venezuela)
- Trichocentrum obcordilabium (Ecuador)
- Trichocentrum oestlundianum (SW Mexico)
- Trichocentrum orthoplectron (Colombia to N Brazil)
- Trichocentrum ostenianum (Paraguay)
- Trichocentrum panduratum (N Peru)
- Trichocentrum pfavii : Pfau's Trichocentrum (Central America)
- Trichocentrum pfavii ssp. dotae (Costa Rica)
- Trichocentrum pfavii ssp. pfavii (Central America)
- Trichocentrum pinelii (Brazil: Rio de Janeiro)
- Trichocentrum pohlianum (SE Brazil)
- Trichocentrum pongratzianum (Peru)
- Trichocentrum popowianum (Ecuador)
- Trichocentrum porphyrio (N Brazil)
- Trichocentrum pulchrum – Long-spurred Trichocentrum, Beautiful Trichocentrum (S Tropical America)
- Trichocentrum pumilumTrichocentrum pumilumTrichocentrum pumilum is a species of orchid found from Brazil to northeastern Argentina....
(Brazil to NE Argentina) - Trichocentrum purpureum (Guyana)
- Trichocentrum recurvum (Guiana, Suriname)
- Trichocentrum splendidumTrichocentrum splendidumTrichocentrum splendidum is a species of orchid endemic to Guatemala....
(Guatemala) - Trichocentrum sprucei (Suriname to Brazil)
- Trichocentrum stacyi (Bolivia)
- Trichocentrum stipitatum (Central America)
- Trichocentrum stramineumTrichocentrum stramineumTrichocentrum stramineum is a species of orchid endemic to Mexico ....
(Mexico: Veracruz) - Trichocentrum teaguei (Bolivia)
- Trichocentrum tenuiflorum (NE Brazil)
- Trichocentrum teres (Costa Rica to Panama)
- Trichocentrum tigrinum – Tiger-like Trichocentrum (Central America to Peru)
- Trichocentrum undulatum (S Florida to N Brazil)
- Trichocentrum viridulum (Colombia)
- Trichocentrum wagneri (Brazil)
- Trichocentrum wittii (Bolivia)