Platystele reflexa Sophronitis displaying the delicate fringed lip

displaying the delicate fringed lip characteristic of the species

a distinguished orchid enthusiast

This 'dark' form is particularly prized by collectors for its deeper pigmentation and the extraordinarily long tails characteristic of the species

Flourishing in high-altitude

Platystele reflexa Sophronitis displaying the delicate fringed lipA cloud forest, cool growing, small, caespitose epiphyte found at an elevation of 1300 to 1650 meters in Ecuador with an erect, stout ramicaul enveloped by 2 to 3 short, ribbrd imbricating sheaths with a single apical, erect, thickly coriaceous, epetiolate, narrowly ovoid, semiterete to fusiform, acute leaf that blooms on an erect, slender, . 92 to 1 [2. 3 to 2. 5 cm] long incl, racemose, successively many flowered inflorescence with hyaline bracts