Question and Answer

Date sent: Wed, 1 May 2002 13:48:46 +0200 From: BVr <xxxx@efrei.fr> To: tomnz@ihug.co.nz Subject: oncidium Hello, I have been on your web site, which was quite well nice, so as to find the name specie of my orchidia. I have little experience in orchidia, so i am having some problems finding it's name specie. Perhaps you could help me. The picture i am sending you is from an orchidia which i have bought in Panama. It lives from 800m to 2000 m. it's bulb is 15cm long, flat and oval. If you want i can send the picture of the entire plant. this orchidia is an oncidium but which kind ? Oncidium sarcodes,oncidium altissimum,Oncidium divaricatum,Oncidium sphacelatum, Oncidium sphegiferum ,Oncidium splendidum... Thank you for your help. Bruno,

Date sent: Mon, 6 May 2002 10:25:18 +1200 Hi Bruno Thanks for all the information. Unfortunately i don't think that I can assist very much. There are some 600 to 700 oncidium species. The information you sent certainly eliminated a number of possibilities. I think that t the plant most probably comes from the excavata or oblongata sections, but these sections contain a number of species. I have been through all the references I have, but they are not much help. You really need a flora of Panama to speed the search, and I cannot find one here in NZ. If may be worth you checking your local library to see if they have one, or can obtain one on interloan. The nearest I can get is Onc. nebulosum, but I am an not completely sure about that identification. Unfortunately a lot of the species are not well described, so this makes identification difficult. The Marie Selby gardens runs an Orchid Identification Centre, check the web page http://www.selby.org/research/oic/oic.htm for details costs etc. You may wish to submit the plant to them for identification as they have the research and reference material to do so. I am sorry i cannot assist further, but I would be interested to know if you have success with Marie Selby should you follow up on that reference.. with kind regards Phil

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