Dendrobium glabrum, commonly known as the creeping star orchid,[2] is a species of epiphytic orchid native to New Guinea and Australia. It has shiny pseudobulbs with a single leathery leaf and white, star-shaped flowers with yellow tips. It forms large clumps on trees in humid forests.
Creeping star orchid | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Monocots |
Order: | Asparagales |
Family: | Orchidaceae |
Subfamily: | Epidendroideae |
Tribe: | Dendrobieae |
Genus: | Dendrobium |
Species: | D. glabrum |
Binomial name | |
Dendrobium glabrum J.J.Sm.[1] | |
Synonyms[1] | |
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Dendrobium glabrum is an epiphytic herb that has shiny, yellowish green pseudobulbs 40–50 mm (1.6–2.0 in) long and 12–15 mm (0.47–0.59 in) wide. There is a single leathery leaf 60–75 mm (2.4–3.0 in) long and 10–15 mm (0.4–0.6 in) wide with a papery bract at its base. Short-lived, star-shaped white flowers with yellowish tips 20–25 mm (0.79–0.98 in) long and wide are produced in leaf axils on a thin stalk about 30 mm (1.2 in) long. The sepals are 14–16 mm (0.55–0.63 in) long and about 2 mm (0.08 in) wide, the petals slightly longer but only half as wide. The labellum is about 8 mm (0.3 in) long and 3 mm (0.1 in) wide with wavy edges near its base and two ridges along its midline. Flowering occurs sporadically and the flowers only last a few hours.[2][3][4]
Dendrobium glabrum was first formally described in 1907 by Johannes Jacobus Smith and the description was published in Bulletin du Département de l'Agriculture aux Indes Néerlandaises.[5][6] The specific epithet (glabrum) is a Latin word meaning "smooth".[7]
The creeping star orchid grows on trees in humid forest in New Guinea and on the Cape York Peninsula as far south as Cairns. [2][3]
Taxon identifiers |
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