Fascicularia bicolor (Ruiz & Pav.) Mez

  • Authority

    Smith, Lyman B. & Downs, Robert J. 1979. Bromelioideae (Bromeliaceae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 14 (3): 1493-2142. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Bromeliaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Fascicularia bicolor (Ruiz & Pav.) Mez

  • Type

    Type. Ruiz & Pavon s n (holotype MA ? n v), Concepción, Chile.

  • Synonyms

    Bromelia bicolor Ruiz & Pav., Billbergia bicolor (Ruiz & Pav.) Schult.f., Bromelia albobracteata Steud., Rhodostachys bicolor (Ruiz & Pav.) Benth., Hechtia gracilis Haage & Schmidt

  • Description

    Description - Plant stemless or with a short stout erect stem with its fusiform base buried in the ground, flowering over 1 m in diameter. Leaves very numerous, ca 5 dm long; sheaths elongate, more or less glabrescent toward base, elsewhere but especially above covered with coarse ferruginous spreading scales or the inner leaves appressed-lepidote, spinulose toward apex; blades linear, attenuate to a pungent apex, 15 mm wide, rigid, glabrate above, sparsely brown-lepidote beneath, spinose-serrate with the basal spines recurved, the intermediate spreading, and the upper antrorse and minute. Inflorescence corymbose or capitiform, 20-40 flowered; outer bracts forming an involucre, the base linear, the blade narrowly elliptic, acute, exceeding the flowers, laciniate-serrate, ivory-white, covered with snow-white scales or often tomentellous. Floral bracts broadly spatulate, obtuse, distinctly shorter than the sepals, fimbriate-crenulate; flowers 33-40 mm long, attenuate toward base. Sepals oblong, obtuse, cucullate and irregularly twisted at apex, to 12 mm long, glabrous inside, lepidote or tomentose-lepidote outside, often glabrate toward base, alate-carinate, the margin more or less hyaline; petals narrowly elliptic, 20 mm long, strict, slightly recurved-spreading at apex at anthesis, pale blue, the scales basal, minute, fleshy; filaments filiform, slightly shorter than the anthers; anthers linear, 8 mm long, acute, rounded at base; ovary clavate, usually lepidote toward apex, broadly bialate; epigynous tube infundibuliform, ovules with a short broadly conical appendage. Fruit 50 mm long.

  • Common Names

    Chupalla, pohen

  • Distribution

    Saxicolous and epiphytic, from near sea level to 420 m alt, central Chile.

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