Several plants were given to me by friends who moved to Costa Rica and I'm trying to ID a few of them. Today someone identified my Yucca Guatemalensis! Here's a photo of the one in question, hopefully someone can help! It has very large leaves and grows low to the ground, snaking its way out of the pot, and the entire stem is covered in what seem to be roots. There's something out there eating its' leaves but I haven't found the culprit! Thanks in advance... W.
Anthurium hookeri? http://toptropicals.com/cgi-bin/gar...uage=e&number=5&v1=eph&user=tt&sale=1&first=6
Hello saltcedar... It seems you nailed it again! I've been doing a bit of research now that I know my Anthurium, and although you probably already know this, I'll throw it out there anyway... There's a bit of discussion about the authenticity of A. hookeri. It seems most people actually own hybrids thinking they have a true hookeri. I won't go into great detail here, instead I will let the experts explain it themselves... Hope you enjoy the following forum and website, and I thank you for your help. By the way, I guess mine is not a true hookeri... It has ruffled edges on the leaves for starters, but beautiful nonetheless! Thanks again... W. (I do have a few more plants to ID) http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/f...xoticrainforest.com/Anthurium hookeri pc.html
Sorry this is not Anthurium hookeri. Just from the photo it is closer to Anthurium cubense based on the thickness or the root mass and canaliculate petiole. Basically, there is a canal on the upper surface of the stalk that supports the leaf. I cannot be certain of that ID because I can’t clearly see the primary lateral leaf veins on the surface of the leaf. You can see them better in one of my photos. Anthurium cubense has primaries that depart the midrib to the leaf margin at a specific angle and will also have 6 to 11 primary lateral leaf veins on each side of the midrib. If you will post more detailed photos of both surfaces of the leaf blade as well as a close-up of the stem (the central axis of the plant), so I can clearly see the petiole and the geniculum which is an enlarged object near the top of the petiole where it inserts into the leaf blade I’ll see what I can do to help out. If all this is overly technical you can understand it better at this link. I include lots of photos and other information which may help with an ID: http://www.exoticrainforest.com/Anthurium cubense pc.html Anthurium hookeri is actually a rare species despite the fact many Anthurium species plus many hybrids catch that name. In my 15 years of collecting aroids I have never been able to find a specimen of the real Anthurium hookeri until this past summer when a very good friend that grows the plant gave me several dozen seeds. Those are still less than 6 inches tall. This plant is truly rare! Anthurium hookeri has several very distinctive features including an interprimary lateral leaf vein that is somewhat short as well as being scalariforme. Scalariforme means they are equally spaced like the rungs of a ladder. Anthurium hookeri also has very distinctive small dots on the underside of the leaves known as glandular punctates. The petioles of Anthurium hookeri are actually quite short. Anthurium hookeri also produces white berries instead of the red ones almost every website on the net proclaims. More on that species as well as detailed photos here: http://www.exoticrainforest.com/Anthurium cubense pc.html This list of definitions may also prove useful: http://www.exoticrainforest.com/Botanical terminology.html Steve
Hello photopro, I'm posting some better photos as requested. I hope these will help determine whether it is in fact Anthurium cubense. Thanks for pitching in and passing on a bit more knowledge... W.
I just reread Dr. Croat's treatment on Anthurium cubense and I would say that is the plant you are growing based on the info available in the photos. There is a minor technical difference in the midrib of your plant and his treatment but I have seen the exact same thing in specimens in his own collection at the Missouri Botanical Garden. The factor that would make the ID even more probable would be the ability to see a color photo of the inflorescence. If the plant produces one in the spring please be sure and post it. Otherwise, in my opinion this is Anthurium cubense and looks very close to my own specimen which Dr. Croat has examined, Steve
I will look out for the inflorescence and if it should produce one, I will definitely post again on this subject. Thank you again for your insight... W.
Trying to figure out species is actually fun. There is a new program available to the public at the Royal Botanic Garden Kew in London known as LUCID and if any of us can collect all the raw data, (petiole length, shape, blade shape and length, vein structure, stem structure, etc it is fairly easy to key out a known species. I play with it and often get very good results. The tow most critical factors are the cataphyll shape and size as well as the inflorescence. Steve
Kew (deservedly) gets credit for a lot of great ideas, but Lucid isn't among them -- it is developed by the Centre for Biological Information Technology in Brisbane, Australia. And yes, I agree it is excellent software for constructing keys, having used it in the past.
Thanks Daniel. It is my understanding that Kew has been working with Biological Information Technology to improve the program. I know for certain the Missouri Botanical Garden is now working on a new version which should be even easier to use. As far as I am aware, LUCID is only available to the public on the Kew's site right now: http://www.cate-araceae.org/index.do;jsessionid=96982249A0181F1EB1E74E6CEB9841D4 On the Kew's site it is only available for a few aroid species but more are being added. Be sure and read their instructions before trying to use the program. If used with the obvious features of a plant first and then slowly removing the species that don't conform it is relatively easy to come up with a list of possible contenders. However, if you input anything incorrectly you are likely to end up with a bad result. When Dr. Croat teaches his class on how to use LUCID he always tells users to try a variety of approaches by entering as many features as possible in differing orders. You will be able to see on the same page all the species you have removed as well as those that are still possibly the species name you are seeking. The next step is to check those names against known photos to see if the plant in your collection looks right. Thanks for the additional information. Steve Steve
