Malaxis
Prodr., 8, 119. 1788.
| Taxon | Illustrator ⠉ | |
|---|---|---|
 | Malaxis paludosa Malaxis unifolia Malaxis porphyrea Aplectrum hyemale | Barbara Alongi Barbara Alongi Barbara Alongi Barbara Alongi |
Herbs, terrestrial to semiepiphytic, glabrous. Roots few, fibrous, 0.3–1 mm wide. Stems swollen at base into pseudobulb, ± globose, glabrous. Leaves 1–3 (–5), with sheathing base; blade elliptic, ovate, or lanceolate. Inflorescences terminal, racemes, spicate racemes, corymbose racemes, or subumbellate racemes; floral bracts inconspicuous, lanceolate, subulate, or triangular-acuminate. Flowers 2–160, resupinate or not, erect or spreading, sessile or minutely to strongly pedicellate; sepals spreading, distinct or lateral sepals basally connate, ovate, elliptic, or lanceolate, 1–6 mm, margins revolute or not; petals spreading or recurved, filiform to linear, lanceolate, or triangular, usually much narrower than sepals; lip ovate or lanceolate, cordate, unlobed to 3-lobed, concave or saccate, widest proximal to middle, base auriculate or truncate; column free; anther terminal; pollinaria 4, waxy; 1 pollinarium or 2 separate hemipollinaria; viscidia yellow or orange. Fruits capsules; previous year’s fruiting stem and capsules frequently present during current-year’s anthesis. x = 14, 15, 18, ca. 20, ca. 21, 22.
Distribution
Widespread, mostly in Asia and East Indies
Discussion
Species ca. 250 (10 in the flora).
Selected References
None.
Lower Taxa
Key
| 1 | Leaves 2–3(–5). | > 2 |
| 1 | Leaves 1(–2, rarely). | > 4 |
| 2 | Lip 2.5–2.9(–4) mm, base prominently cordate-auriculate. | Malaxis spicata |
| 2 | Lip 1.2–2.5 mm, base truncate or cuneate. | > 3 |
| 3 | Leaves basal; base of lip cuneate; flowers not resupinate. | Malaxis paludosa |
| 3 | Leaves cauline; base of lip truncate, 3-lobed, lateral lobes auriculate; flowers resupinate. | Malaxis monophyllos var. brachypoda |
| 4 | Lip 3-dentate at apex, middle tooth smallest, sometimes so inconspicuous that apex appears 2-dentate. | > 5 |
| 4 | Lip unlobed (with or without single point) at apex. | > 7 |
| 5 | Flowers apparently sessile, pedicels 1.3–1.7 mm; flowers not resupinate. | Malaxis soulei |
| 5 | Flowers clearly pedicellate, pedicels 3.4–10(–13) mm; flowers resupinate. | > 6 |
| 6 | Lip with auricles 0.6 or more times as long as distance from base of lip to apex of middle lobe. | Malaxis bayardii |
| 6 | Lip with auricles less than 0.6 times as long as distance from base of lip to apex of middle lobe. | Malaxis unifolia |
| 7 | Lip base truncate with prominent, forward-directed auricles; flowers not resupinate. | Malaxis monophyllos var. monophyllos |
| 7 | Lip base cordate or hastate-auriculate; flowers resupinate. | > 8 |
| 8 | Inflorescences 1.5–3 cm; pedicels crowded. | Malaxis corymbosa |
| 8 | Inflorescence 2.6–25 cm; pedicels not crowded. | > 9 |
| 9 | Sepals 4–6 mm. | Malaxis abieticola |
| 9 | Sepals 1.8–2.4 mm. | > 10 |
| 10 | Sepals glabrous, not papillose; apex of lip broadly acuminate, auricles at base narrow and parallel. | Malaxis porphyrea |
| 10 | Sepals papillose, not glabrous; apex of lip narrowly acuminate, auricles at base broad and diverging. | Malaxis wendtii |
"usually much narrower" is not a number.