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Sword-Leaf Habenaria
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Sword-Leaf Habenaria
P Native Photo: Krishan Lal
Common name: Sword-Leaf Habenaria
Botanical name: Habenaria ensifolia    Family: Orchidaceae (Orchid family)
Synonyms: Habenaria pectinata subsp. ensifolia, Ochyrorchis ensifolia

Sword-Leaf Habenaria is a terrestrial orchid with stem 60-70 cm tall, robust. Leaves are distributed chiefly towards the upper portion of the stem, 7-15 cm long, oblong or linear-lanceshaped, tapering, stem-claspinge at the base, 3-nerved. Greenish flowers are borne in racemes 10-20 cm long. Flowers are 3-4 cm across. Bracts are leaf like, linear-lanceshaped, much longer than ovary. Sepals are unequal, erect, tip recurved; the dorsal 15-20 mm long, lanceshaped, laterals rather wider, sub-sickle shaped, pointed or apiculate. Petals are forming a hood with the dorsal sepal, narrowly and sickle shaped oblong, blunt, pointed or apiculate, pale-green, frilly on outer margins. Lip is a little longer than sepals, 3-lobed, pale-green, margin of side lobes are deeply comb-like; mid lobe linear, equal or shorter then side lobes. Sword-Leaf Habenaria is found in the HImalayas, from Himachal Pradesh to Arunachal Pradesh, at altitudes of 500-3200 m Flowering: July-August.

Identification credit: Krishan Lal, Pankaj Kumar Photographed in Sirmaur Distt, Himachal Pradesh.

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