Tetramicra
(pronounced: tet-rah-MYE-krah)
Classification
Epidendreae subtribe Laeliinae. The genus is divided into three subgenera on the degree of lobing of the lip and the fleshiness of the stems.
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Overview
Terrestrials, lithophytes, or epiphytes, often trailing. Roots coarse. Leaves linear, succulent, basal. Inflorescences terminal, erect, long-pedunculate racemes, the floral bracts minute. Flowers resupinate. Sepals and petals free, spreading, subsimilar. Lip unlobed or three-lobed, usually without callus, free or partially fused with the column. Column club-shaped, broadly winged, without foot; pollinia 8, four larger and four smaller, connected by four caudicles.
Etymology
From the Greek tetra, meaning fourfold and mikros, meaning small, referring to the four smaller pollinia.
Distribution
A genus of ten species from the West Indies.
Care and Culture Card
See basic growing conditions and care information below.
Grow plants of Tetramicra in bulb-pans or other shallow container in a medium-grade epiphyte mixture with the additional of gravel. Provide full light, intermediate to warm temperatures, and regular watering throughout the year. The roots should dry out fully between waterings. Care should be taken to avoid over-watering or breakdown of the potting mixture which destroy the roots.
Literature
Dod, D. D. 1985. El curioso genero “Tetramicra.” Bol. Soc. Dominicana Orquideol. 2(4):4-10. Sauleda, R. P. and R. M. Adams 1979. The rediscovery and typification of Tetramicra urbaniana Cogniaux (Orchidaceae) from the Bahama Islands. Taxon 28(4):363-365.
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