Ludisia

Ludisia.

Family Orchidaceae > Sub-family Orchidoideae > Tribe Cranichideae > Subtribe Goodyerinae.

A group of orchids some of which are grown for their attractive leaves which can be
    dark reddish, blackish or brownish-purple, medium to dark green and with veins
    in silver, white, green, pink or red.

The Subtribe Goodyerinae has 37 genera and about 630 species.
Genera include Anoectochilus, Goodyera, Ludisia, Macodes, Microchilus, Odontochilus,
    Rhomboda and Zeuxine.

There are a lot of hybrids.
Genera have been merged into others and sometimes later reinstated resulting in
    species with many synonyms.
Classification is still not settled and new species are still being found.

Ludisia discolor.
The only species in the genus it has been known by various names including Anoectochilus
    dawsonianus, Gonogona discolor, Haemaria dawsoniana, H. discolor, Ludisia
    dawsoniana and Orchiodes discolor.

It is a terrestrial or occasionally lithophytic plant that does not form pseudobulbs.
A basal rosette of up to 5 leaves grows from thick, fleshy, red, erect or creeping stems.
Stems are up to 25 cm tall and finely hairy.

Leaves are elliptic to lanceolate and up to about 8 cm long.
There is a petiole-like base forming a sheath.
The leaves are velvety on top and smooth underneath.
The upper surface is described as blackish-green, deep purple green, dark green, purplish
    brown, deep maroon or red.
There are 5 silvery-red longitudinal veins and some cross veins.
Patterns vary between plants.
The underside of the leaves are a pale or burgendy red.

Inflorescences are stiff, erect, and hairy, up to 30 cm high, with a few to many small flowers.
There are 2 or 3 reddish, hairy sheathing bracts up to 1.5 cm long with marginal hairs.

There are up to 10 asymmetric, resupinate flowers about 7 mm across.
They are white, sometimes tinged with red, and triangular in outline.

The ovate, lateral sepals spread laterally or backwards.
The dorsal sepal, with the lateral petals form a hood over the column.
The ovate lateral petals are narrower than the sepals and have a rounded tip.

The twisted, 3 part lip, about 10 mm long, is attached to the sides of the column.
The base has 2 shallow sacs with 2 fleshy calli.
The 2 mm middle section has erect edges and the end section is enlarged into a
    transversely oblong tip 4-6 mm wide.

The column is twisted in the opposite direction to the lip.
The rostellum is triangular and, after the viscidium has been removed it may be cleft or 2 lobed.
The stigma lobes are joined.
There are 4 pollinia.
The ovary and pedicel together are up to 2 cm long and hairy.

J.F.

Species