3- LAELIA (Hadrolaelia) alaorii,
jongheana, sincorana
Repeating what we wrote under the first article
about hadrolaelias a couple of weeks ago "We are going to start saying that we are, of course, aware that
the last trend is to treat these plants as pertaining to the genus Cattleya,
but as before, we are not going to discuss the matter as the objective here is to try to figure out how to separate
the three species and nothing more. Thus, these species are here treated as laelias, just for the sake of better
understanding what we are talking about".
With that out of the way, the three species discussed
here are very easy to tell apart, and Laelia
sincorana is the only one that can
be confused with the three species in the L.
pumila group. However, Laelia sincorana is usually very easy to tell apart due to the very typical plants with short round pseudobulbs
and short, upright and boat-shaped leathery leaves.
As we can see by the distribution map, the three
species have fairly distinct and limited distribution ranges. Laelia alaorii
occurs in fairly lower elevations of 300m to 600m. (1,000 to 2,000 ft.), rarely outside this range and inside the
tropical rain forest that covers limited mountain ranges near the coast of the state of Bahia. The species grows
thus under fairly shady and humid conditions, and the tropical status of the distribution area means that the conditions
are pretty uniform throughout the year. Laelia
jongheana has an interrupted distribution
pattern, and it is easy to understand why. The species grows above 1,300m. (about 4,500 ft.), and there are few
mountain ranges that go above this in the state of Minas Gerais. The occurrence in the state of Espírito
Santo seems to be fairly restricted to one mountain range, and taking from reports this populations has been severely
depleted. In Minas Gerais, though, the species still can be found in fairly good numbers in populations that are
difficult to access. Laelia sincorana occurs only in the Chapada Diamantina in the central part
of the state of Bahia, specifically in a section called "Serra do Sincorá" and hence the species'
name. Elevation where the species occur is usually above 1,300m. (about 4,500 ft.), but the fact that the range
is more tropical implies that the species is usually not as prone to withstand colder Winter temperatures as is
Laelia jongheana.
Below we have pictures of the three species, and
in the case of Laelia alaorii the variation from darker to lighter is shown in the pictures.
Laelia alaorii tends to have light-colored flowers, and in most cases the
colors are between the extremes shown here. Laelia
jongheana is a very uniform species,
with color usually varying just in the intensity of the pink-magenta segments. The species has alba forms though,
with pure white flowers with yellow lip disc. Laelia
sincorana behaves more like the species
in the L. pumila group, that is, there are several color form like alba, coerulea, concolor and semialba.
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Laelia alaorii
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Laelia jongheana
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Laelia sincorana
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The pictures show how distinctive the species are. What we can't see is the size of the flowers. Laelia alaorii has small flowers, around 5 cm. (2"), which is about half the size of most others.
Laelia sincorana has flowers that average 10cm. (around 4") or a bit
more, which is on par with the three species in the L.
pumila group (L. dayana, L. praestans and L. pumila).
Laelia jongheana, however, has much larger flowers that average 12 to 15
cm. (5"to 6") or even a bit more.
In terms of shape, Laelia alaorii
has flowers with petals that are a bit "droopy" like in L. pumila,
but the lip are laterally sigmoid as in L.
praestans. The flowers usually don't
open very well and are, as mentioned, always lightly colored. The lip tube keels are flat and fairly well elevated,
appearing in parallel pairs on each side; this is very easy to see in frontal view. Laelia jongheana
has large, slender flowers with lateral sepals that are slightly more "forked" than on the other species
and segments that are generally more pointed. Its flowers are very flat, with upright petals. The lips are proportionally
small, fairly linear and facing down and usually forming sort of a plane with the dorsal sepal; the lip tube is
also quite long. The lips have always a golden disc and the longitudinal keels are usually 7-9, fairly flat but
not much elevated; however, they elevate at the frontal end where they get a bit wavy, something also easy to see
in the lip detail picture. Color is basically pink, with the darker ones nearly light magenta. Laelia sincorana has also upright petals, and flowers are fairly flat. Lips are long, with the sidelobes
basically touching but not overlapping by much or at all. The frontlobe is much longer than in Laelia pumila (its closest species), and the lip itself faces more down as in L. jongheana. The keels are the less developed of the three species here, and are usually 4, in two
parallel pairs and not much elevated. In terms of color, flowers are more magenta than pink, much darker than in
Laelia jongheana and very similar to the regularly colored pumilas. The lip
detail picture is from a coerulea form, hence the light colors.
Blooming season is fairly well-marked for Laelia jongheana and L. sincorana, with the former blooming by early Spring and the latter
by early Summer. Laelia alaorii, being a warmer tropical species, has a less distinct flowering
season.
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Laelia alaorii
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Laelia jongheana
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Laelia sincorana
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| Petals a bit droopy, flowers don't open well and in
some cases almost not at all. Flowers up to 5 cm. (2"). |
Petals upright, usually flat and pointed. Flowers are
very flat and large, up to 15 cm. (6") or more. |
Petals upright, fairly flat. Flowers medium-sized,
usually around 10 cm. (4"). |
| Lips sigmoid in profile, lightly-colored like the rest
of the flower segments. Sidelobes usually overlap by quite a bit and this, together with the sigmoid profile, resembles
Laelia praestans. Color same as other segments or just a bit darker pink. |
Lips straight and small in proportion to the other
segments. Sidelobes touch or sometimes not even that and in these cases the columns are exposed in front view.
Frontlobes usually white with a touch of pink at the borders. Borders ruffled. |
Lips average-sized, straight, with sidelobes that touch
or barely overlap each other. Color intense on the frontobe and in most cases also on the sidelobe borders. Borders
usually smooth or slightly wavy. |
| Keels usually 4, in two pairs, parallel, elevated and
flattened. Tubes white to light creamy- yellow, keels usually white. |
Discs always golden yellow with 7-9 keels that are
flattened, parallel and not much elevated until they reach the frontlobe where they get wavy and elevated. |
Keels usually 4, in two pairs, not much elevated or
flattened, the least developed in the group. Tubes and keels white to creamy-yellow colored. |
