Cochliostema
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Cochliostema velutinum Cochliostema odoratissimum |
Cochliostema is a genus of plants with 2-3 species in the family Commelinaceae (the spiderwort and dayflower family). The genus is distributed in Southern Nicaragua to southern Ecuador.
[edit] Systematics
The two species are Cochliostema velutinum R.W.Read and Cochliostema odoratissimum Lemaire. Cochliostema jacobianum is considered as part of the latter species.
[edit] Morphology
Rosette, typically unbranched herbs with somewhat succulent, strap-shaped leaves. In the wild, plants grow as epiphytes; however, terrestrial plants are found on or around tree falls suggesting that these ground-dwelling plants had been growing epiphytic. The one species, Cochliostema odoratissimum, is a tank-epiphyte, resembling certain bromeliads in this respect. This species also attains the greatest size for the genus, with its leaves reaching to 1 m in length, and plants sometimes reaching 2 m in height.
Flowers are borne in large thyrses and are generally the largest, among the most fragrant, and arguably the most complex in the spiderwort family. They consist of 3 sepals, 3 blue to blue-violet and fringed petals, 3 stamens fused by their filaments in the upper half of the flower, and 3 carpels fused into a single trilocular pistil. The fused staminal structure has 3 spirally coiled anthers enveloped and concealed by petaloid extensions of the filaments of the two lateral stamens contributing to the 3-staminate structure. These structures, termed "cuculli", are narrowed into two distal hose-like extensions.
[edit] References
- Hardy CR, DW Stevenson (2000) Development of the flower, gametophytes, and floral vasculature in Cochliostema odoratissimum (Commelinaceae). Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 134 (1): 131-157.
- Hardy CR (2001) Systematics of Cochliostema, Geogenanthus, and an undescribed genus in the spiderwort family, Commelinaceae. Ph.D. Dissertation, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.
