''Vanilla phaeantha,'' common name leafy vanilla or oblong-leaved vanilla, is a plant species known to occur in the wild only on the islands of

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

and

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

, and also in

Collier County Collier County is a county in the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 375,752; an increase of 16.9% since the 2010 United States Census. Its county seat is East Naples, where the county offices were moved from Ev ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. It occurs in cypress swamps and hammocks at elevations of less than 20 m (67 feet).Flora of North America v 26 p 509
''Vanilla phaeantha'' has persistent, leathery, flat leaves up to 15 cm long, hence about the same length as the

internodes A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant, the other being the root. It supports leaves, flowers and fruits, transports water and dissolved substances between the roots and the shoots in the xylem and phloem, stores nutrien ...

or slightly shorter. Flowers are borne in

racemes A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...

of about 12 flowers, located in the axils of the leaves. Sepals and

petals Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corolla''. Petals are usually ...

are green, leathery and rigid except for the yellow to cream-colored lip. Fruits are cylindrical, up to 10 cm (4 inches) long and 1 cm (0.4 inches) in diameter.Wunderlin, R. P. 1998. Guide to the Vascular Plants of Florida i–x, 1–806. University Press of Florida, Gainesville.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2510372 Orchids of the United States Orchids of Florida Orchids of Trinidad Flora of Cuba phaeantha Flora without expected TNC conservation status