Brownleea
Brownleea parviflora - Blackboard 43: Harry bolus Icones Orchidearum Austro - Africanarum (1896 )
Brownleea is a genus of the orchid family ( Orchidaceae). The seven species are native to Africa and Madagascar. They are small, perennial, herbaceous plants. The genus Brownleea forms its own subtribe Brownleeinae.
Description
The terrestrial or occasionally epiphytic plants are five to 60 cm high. They arise from a hairy tuber. The shoot is first wrapped above the tuber of some brown precipitate leaves, it followed by one or more leaves. These are oval shaped to linear, to 22 cm long, with some prominent veins.
About the leaves to the stem axis is continued as a racemose inflorescence. The flowers are loosely spaced or crowded. They are white or pink to purple and measure five to 30 mm in diameter. Three petals - the dorsal sepal and lateral petals - stick together and form a hood over the flower. The dorsal sepal has a 5 to 50 mm long spur. The lateral sepals are elliptical and spread out flat, they replace her acting effect the lip, this petal is formed only rudimentary and measures 0.1 to 2 mm. The scar is located on the basis of the short column. The stamen contains two granular pollinia that are attached to each a viscid ( Viscidium ). The side of the dust sheet are two staminodes. The separation between scar tissue and stamen is large and bilobed, each lobe of the Viscidien bears. A third, middle lobe is only prominent Brownleea caerulea. The long cylindrical fruit capsule is longitudinally ribbed.
Dissemination
The species of the genus Brownleea are located in the tropical and subtropical southern Africa and Madagascar. Most species are native to higher ground, relatively well-supplied with water grasslands. Brownleea caerulea and Brownleea maculata are found in the understory of forests.
Systematics and botanical history
The genus Brownleea was erected in 1842 by Lindley. Type species is Brownleea parviflora. The name honors the Scottish missionary Brownleea John Brownlee, the plants from South Africa sent to Harvey. Because of its isolated position within the tribe Diseae presented Linder and Kurzweil 1994 to own subtribe Brownleeinae that contains only this genus.
We distinguish the following seven types:
- Brownleea caerulea Harv. ex. Lindl.
- Brownleea galpini bolus Brownleea galpinii subsp. galpinii
- Brownleea galpinii subsp. major ( bolus) H.P.Linder