''Maianthemum amoenum'' is a perennial

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

, growing as an

epiphyte An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phoroph ...

on trees in cloud forests from Mexico south to Honduras.

Description

Plants are tall. Roots grow scattered evenly along densely clumped, rounded

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome (; , ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from axillary buds and grow hori ...

s. Stems are leaning to upright, usually with 6 to 9 leaves (sometimes up to 11), set apart.

Leaves

Leaves usually clasp the stalk; some may have a short ( long) petiole. Leaf blades are egg-shaped with pointed tips and veins are prominent. The leaf surface is hairless and shiny.

Flowering clusters

25 to 75 flowers are set on a branched flowering stalk (

panicle A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are of ...

). The main axis of the panicle is usually 4-6 cm long, stiff and straight. It is hairless and often red or with red patches. The side branches of the panicle are short (1-2 cm long) and arranged in a helix. They start off ascending, but become spreading as the flowers bloom. Each side branch has 3-5 flowers, with one flower set close to the base of the branch and the others set on 1-2 cm long stalks (

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

s) at about 4mm intervals along the branch.

Flowers and fruits

The flowers are cup-shaped and made up of lavender to pink-white

tepals A tepal is one of the outer parts of a flower (collectively the perianth). The term is used when these parts cannot easily be classified as either sepals or petals. This may be because the parts of the perianth are undifferentiated (i.e. of very ...

up to 6.5 mm long with

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s inserted at the base. Fruits are rounded to 3-lobed, 5-8mm across, green ripening to red. Flowering occurs from January to April and fruits remain on the plant into October.

Distribution

It has been found in El Salvador, Guatemala (the Totonicapán area), Honduras and in the Veracruz, Oaxaca, Chiapas states of Mexico.

Habitat and ecology

''Maianthemum amoenum'' usually grows as an epiphyte on canopy trees of the cloud forest at 2300 - 3300 m elevation. Plants are usually found or more above the ground, but sometimes persist in blow-downs. They can form dense clumps covering canopy trees such as ''

Quercus An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably '' ...

'' and ''

Drimys ''Drimys'' is a genus of about eight species of woody evergreen flowering plants, in the family Winteraceae. The species are native to the Neotropics, ranging from southern Mexico to the southern tip of South America. They are primitive dicots ...

''.

References

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q15521939, from2=Q38492097 amoenum Flora of Chiapas Flora of Oaxaca Flora of Veracruz Flora of Honduras Flora of Guatemala Flora of El Salvador