Peristylus constrictus - Constricted Peristylus

Constricted Peristylus is a medium to large sized, sized, hot to warm growing terrestrial orchid with a cylindrical, velvet-hairy tuber giving rise to an erect stem. Stem is bracteate above and carrying on the lower half ovate-elliptic to ovate-lanceolate, pointed, shortly stalked and channeled, netveined leaves. The plant blooms in the late spring and early summer on a terminal, cylindric, hairless 9-35 cm long, densely many flowered inflorescence with erect, lanceshaped, long-pointed floral bracts. Flowers are white, sweetly scented. Flowers are horizontal, sepals pale brown, petals and lip pure white, ovary 8-10 mm including pedicel. Dorsal sepal forms a hood, concave, 7-9 x 2-3 mm. Lateral sepals are spreading, narrowly oblong-lanceshaped, 7-9 x 2.5 mm, margin incurved. Petals are ovate-lanceshaped, oblique, 9-11 x 3.5-4 mm, 3- or 4-veined, tip blunt, lip spreading, oblong-obovate, 9-11 x 4-5 mm, base 3-lobed near middle. Lateral lobes are diverging at an acute angle from axis of lip, triangular to shortly oblong, slightly curved, 2.8-5.8 mm, tip pointed, mid-lobe 3-5.5 mm, slightly broader than lateral lobes, tip blunt, spur pendulous, globose, 2-3 mm, apex rounded, neck contracted. Constricted Peristylus is found in the Chinese Himalayas, Assam, Bangladesh, eastern Himalayas, Myanamar, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and the Philippines at elevations of 450-1200 m.