Dendrobium adae F.M. Bailey 1884 SECTION Dendrocoryne Photo by © Lourens Grobler

Inflorescence Photo byRichard Korber

to to EARLY

Common Name Ada's Dendrobium [Mrs. Ada Stewart 1800's] - In Australia Slender Cane Orchid

Flower Size 3/4" to 1.6' [2 to 4 cm]

Found in northeastern Australia [Cape York Penninsula] as a sympodial epiphyte or lithophyte in exposed, north to west facing locations in cloud forest or in protected spots in open forests at elevations of 700 to 1220 meters as a small to medium sized, cold to cool growing, semi-pendant species with thin, wiry, erect to semi pendant stems that are swollen at the base and become yellow-brown and furrowed with age carrying 2 to 4 apical, narrowly or broadly lanceolate, thin leaves which blooms on a 3" [7.5 cm] long, apical raceme with few to several [2 to 6] fragrant [scented of orange blossoms] flowers occuring in the winter and early spring.

On cool cloudy days and at night the flowers are scentless and they close half way, they also yellow with age.

Synonyms Callista adae (F.M. Bailey) Kuntze 1891; Dendrobium ancorarium Rupp 1945; Dendrobium palmerstoniae Sclechter 1907; Thelychiton adae (F.M.Bailey) M.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones 2002; Tropilis adae (F.M. Bailey) Butzin 1982

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Orchidaceae Monandre-Dendrobiinae Fr. Kraenzlin 1910; AOS Bulletin Vol 35 No 4 1966; Orchids of Australia Nicholls 1969 drawing fide; Dendrobium Orchids of Australia Upton 1989 drawing fide/photo good; Orchid Species Culture Dendrobium Bakers 1996; Dendrobium and their Relatives Lavarack, Harris and Stocker 2000 photo good; The Dendrobiums H. P. Wood 2006 photo fide; Native Orchids of Australia Jones 2006 as Thelychiton adae photo fide

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