Pitcairnia

Pitcairnia wendlandii

Pitcairnia is a plant genus in the subfamily Pitcairnioideae within the family Bromeliaceae ( Bromeliaceae ). It is equipped with about 300 species, the two tarte richest genus of the family.

• 4.1 Literature
• 4.2 Notes and references

Dissemination

The area of the species ranges from southern Mexico through the Caribbean islands to northern Argentina and Peru. One type of this genus, Pitcairnea feliciana has its original home in West Africa. All other Bromeliaceae are located purely neuweltlich.

Today one can find species in tropical humid to semi-arid areas. There are terrestrial and epiphytic growing species, even a few climbing species one knows. Some species grow directly on rock. As a special Pitcairnia flammea thrives at amphibious locations in mountain streams ( Rheophyt ).

Description

Habit

The Pitcairnia species usually grow as a perennial herbaceous plant. The shoot axes can be compressed, then the species growing rosette, or the shoot axes are not compressed, then watch the corn plant something similar or in extreme cases, are climbing species. The largest species ( Pitcairnia villetaensis ) reach stature heights of 3 meters, the small growing species (eg Pitcairnia tabuliformis, Pitcairnia andreana ) only reach heights of growth of over 15 centimeters. Some species form rhizomes. Most species are evergreen. All species are not hardy.

The leaves are very diverse. Some species have in petiole and leaf blade indented leaves, which is unusual for bromeliads, even within the monocot plants is not very common. The leaf margin may be smooth or prickly depending on the type.

Some species are heterophyll (i.e., they form different sheets). They shed their green leaves from during the dry periods and make them new with the beginning of the rainy season. In the dry season they only have rough, dry -looking, reinforced, small leaves, there are chlorophyll -leaves. This species bloom in the dry season, so if they have no leaves.

Inflorescences and flowers

The often decorative inflorescences have foliage leaf-like or membranous bracts often in different shades of red. The terminal inflorescence can be grapey, ährig or assembled.

Both the individual flowers and the inflorescences are not durable, so Pitcairnia species are not grown by nurseries. In private collections, they are rare, but most botanical gardens have several kinds.

The often very beautiful flowers can be white or yellow or often they have different shades of red. The hermaphroditic, flowers are threefold (mostly easy) zygomorph. Some species are pollinated by birds. Some species have rolled back petals. The petals often have scales at the base ( ligule ). There are two circles, each with three free stamens present. The ovary is half inferior.

Few Pitcairnia - species bloom at night - examples are Pitcairnia stenophylla and Pitcairnia loki - schmidtiae.

The flowers formula is:

Fruit and seeds

Are formed dreiklappige capsule fruits. The fruits contain many airworthy seeds that have comb - like or hood- shaped appendage. Seeds are not viable for long. The seeds germinate very easily, so you can easily use young plants.

System

The genus Pitcairnia was named after the English physician and botanist William Pitcairn ( 1711-1791 ).

Today includes about 300 species in the genus Pitcairnia: (2006 )

• Pitcairnia Abundans L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia acicularis L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia adscendens L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia aequatorialis L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia alata L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia albiflos Herbert
• Pitcairnia altensteinii ( link Klotzsch & Otto ) Lemaire: Pitcairnia al. ( Link Klotzsch & Otto ) Lemaire var altensteinii
• Pitcairnia al. var gigantea ( Hook. ) Baker
• Pitcairnia al. var minor L.B.Smith

• Pitcairnia bella bella var L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia bella var densior L.B.Smith

• Pitcairnia br. André var brachysperma
• Pitcairnia br. var snowii G.S.Varadarajan & Forero

• Pitcairnia br. L' Héritier var bromeliifolia
• Pitcairnia br. var graminifolia Grisebach
• Pitcairnia br. var wynteri R.W.Read

• Pitcairnia about var cardenasii
• Pitcairnia about var macrantha L.B.Smith

• Pitcairnia co. var corallina
• Pitcairnia co. var viridis

• Pitcairnia ech. Hook. var echinata
• Pitcairnia ech. var sublaevis L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia ech. var Vallensis L.B.Smith

• Pitcairnia fl Lindl. var flammea
• Pitcairnia fl var floccosa L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia fl var glabrior L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia fl var macropoda L.B.Smith & Reitz
• Pitcairnia fl var pallida L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia fl var roezlii ( Morren ) L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia fl spinulosa var E.Pereira

• Pitcairnia h var Escapa Mez
• Pitcairnia h var heterophylla ( Lindl. ) Beer f heterophylla
• Pitcairnia h heterophylla var f albiflora Standley & Smith

• Pitcairnia inermis var flava L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia inermis ( Meyer in Presl ) Meyer ex Schultes var inermis

• Pitcairnia killipiana var killipiana
• Pitcairnia killipiana var viridis GSVaradarajan & Forero

• Pitcairnia kniphofioides L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia koeneniana E.Gross & Barthlott
• Pitcairnia kressii H.Luther
• Pitcairnia kroemeri H.Luther
• Pitcairnia lanosisepala Matuda
• Pitcairnia Ruiz & Pavón lanuginosa
• Pitcairnia laxissima Baker
• Pitcairnia lechleri ​​Baker
• Pitcairnia lehmannii Baker
• Pitcairnia lepidopetalon L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia leprieurii Baker
• Pitcairnia leprosa L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia lignosa L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia lindae Betancur
• Pitcairnia loki - schmidtiae Barthlott & Rauh
• Pitcairnia longebracteata Bouché ex Mez
• Pitcairnia longipes Mez
• Pitcairnia longissimiflora Ibisch, R.Vásquez & E.Gross
• Pitcairnia lopezii L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia luschnathii W.Weber
• Pitcairnia lutescens Mez & Sodiro
• Pitcairnia lyman - smithiana H.Luther
• Pitcairnia macarenensis L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia macranthera André
• Pitcairnia macrobotrys André
• Pitcairnia macrochlamys Mez
• Pitcairnia maidifolia ( C.Morren ) Decaisne
• Pitcairnia maritima L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia marnier - lapostollei L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia matogrossensis E.Pereira & Leme
• Pitcairnia matudae L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia megasepala Baker
• Pitcairnia melanopoda L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia membranifolia Baker
• Pitcairnia meridensis Klotzsch ex Mez
• Pitcairnia me eliana André
• Pitcairnia micotrinensis R.W.Read
• Pitcairnia microcalyx Baker: Pitcairnia Intl. elliptica var L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia Intl. Baker var microcalyx
• Pitcairnia Intl. var schlimii ( Baker) L.B.Smith

• Pitcairnia nigra ( Carrière ) André var nigra
• Pitcairnia nigra var pulchella ( Mez ) H.Luther

• Pitcairnia pa armata var L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia pa var macrantha L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia pa var patentiflora
• Pitcairnia pa var subintegra L.B.Smith

• Pitcairnia pungens var flava L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia pungens Kunth var pungens

• Pitcairnia roseoalba var rubra E.Gross & Rauh
• Pitcairnia roseoalba E.Gross & Rauh var rubra

• Pitcairnia rubiginosa var amazonica ( Baker) LBSmith
• Pitcairnia rubiginosa var integra L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia rubiginosa var rubiginosa

• Pitcairnia si. var ornata H.Luther
• Pitcairnia si. H.Luther var simulans

• Pitcairnia sq. var aurantiaca L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia sq. var colorata L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia sq. L.B.Smith squarrosa var

• Pitcairnia to. var glaberrima E.Pereira
• Pitcairnia to. L.B.Smith var torresiana

• Pitcairnia trianae retusa var L.B.Smith
• Pitcairnia trianae André var trianae

Some species, such as Pitcairnia corallina ⇒ Pepinia corallina and Pitcairnia occidentalis occidentalis ⇒ Pepinia were spun in a genus Pepinia ( as shown, for example at Luther 2004); recent studies (Ralf Horres 2003) do not confirm this separation and prefer the old scope of Pitcairnia.

Swell

• Harry E. Luther: An Alphabetical List of Bromeliad Binomials 2008 in The Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, Sarasota, Florida, USA. Published by The Bromeliad Society International. (PDF file, 314 kB)