Aechmea serrata (L.) Mez
Literature references:
*move your mouse pointer over the page numbers to see comment
Comments:
- AECHMEA SERRATA by Marcel Lecoufle in Brom. Soc. Bull. 14(4):70-73. 1964
AECHMEA SERRATA IS NOT ONLY very rarely seen in cultivation, but it is also seldom found growing in its place of origin. It is native to the French islands of Guadeloupe and Martinque in the Carihbean Sea, where it grows epiphytically on certain trees at altitudes between 30 to 600 meters or 90 to 1,800 feet. It may possibly be found in other West Indian islands.
This species was discovered in 1753 by P. Plumier, who gave it the name of Bromelia ramosa & racemosa foliis arundinaceis serratis (Plantarum Americanarum, p. 53, pl. 64, 1775). Various others have given this bromeliad other names: Tillandsia serrata, Linne; Caraguata serrata. Roemer & Schultes; Platystachys plumieri. Beer; Aechmea plumieri, Baker; Caragate dentee, Lamarck; and Aechmea serrata. Mez.
The name serrata comes from the Latin term serratus, which mcans dentate or toothed like a saw. The leaves are edged with dark reddish-brown sharp teeth, which are about 2 mm or 1/12th of an inch long. These teeth are separated from each other by a distance of approximately 1 to 9 mm.
The leaves of Aechmea serrata are large, their length measuring usually 60 cm. or two feet. If the plant were to receive regular feeding and careful culture it probably would assume much greater proportions. As can be noted from the accompanying photograph, the leaves are fairly rigid. The leaves are covered with white scales which are placed in parallel rows like thin silvered lines following the length of their support. These scales, which are more numerous on the under side of the leaf than on the upper, are necessary for the well being of the plant, for they absorb the humidity from the air as well as derive nourishment from dust and other particles that might fall on them. The illustration showing the closeup of these scales shows them magnified about nine times.
The flower spike is 60 cm or two feet high and presents a harmonious combination of pink and green shades lasting long before the first flower starts to open. The paniculate inflorescence has a diam. of 13 cm. or 5 inches and a height of 25 cm. or 10 inches. Each raceme is a compcund of 6 to 8 (rarely 9) flowers. At their base is a slightly pendent bract; there are other bracts along the stem practically hiding it. The coloration of the bracts is a mixture of pink and green, edged with white hairs. The blossom starts from the base, and each morning for two full months, three to seven flowers open with dark violet petals and a violet stigma surrounded by white stamens.
A blossom lasting two months seems a record indeed! The fruits increase in size during the 5 or 6 months which are necessary to ripen them, during which time their coloration turns to a deep violet, lasting for weeks and weeks in this showy condition. During this time offshoots develop for the perpetuation of the species.
A detailed description with drawings of Aechmea serrata was published in the Revue Horticole de France for the year 1907, page 129. The described plant which was in flower fifty eight years ago differs from the ones we now have by its smaller dimensions and its different bracts. This old plant had been imported from La Martinique, but was lost during the war because of lack of heating in the greenhouses. The ones we have now come from La Guadeloupe. We are trying to get a new importation from Martinique in order to compare the two plants in case there may be two varieties of this Aechmea.
As to cultivation, we keep the seedlings in a hot greenhouse and give the adult plants a minimum temperature of 17° C or 62° F. A compost of oak or beech mold leaves may be used, but we prefer our usual orchid compost in which are mixed one third each of osmunda, polypodium roots, and sphagnum moss. The plants do best in filtered sunlight.
Aechmea serrata is a very showy, beautiful plant and is one that will lend itself to modern indoor decoration. Because of its long blooming season it is certainly a desirable plant. It is our hope to get some even more striking specimens through hybridization.
1 Ru de l’Eglise, Boissy Saint Leger, France
NOTE In all probability this plant is A. smithiorum var longistipitata.. —See J. Bromeliad Soc.
- Aechmea serrata by Derek Butcher in J Brom Soc 55(5): 207-9. 2005
In J. Brom. Soc 54(4): 176. 2004 Jeffrey Kent pointed out that we should be growing the rarer species to help in their conservation and this is a very worthy cause. However care must be taken that the correctly identified species is being nurtured. Aechmea serrata is just one where many have problems with identification.
Let us now look at ‘Blooming Bromeliads’ by Baensch 1994 page 65.This is what Baensch had to say.
“Aechmea serrata. This is a large bromeliad resembling A. smithiorum as far as the habit is concerned. However, the inflorescence is far more compact. The possibility remains that this plant is in fact a variety or form of A. smithiorum and is incorrectly referred to as A. serrata in the collections. According to the monograph by Smith & Downs, A. serrata has, as its name indicates, serrated instead of entire primary bracts”
To me this is odd statement. I would have put the name as A. smithiorum with the comment it was in collections wrongly as A. serrata!! To qualify for the name A. serrata you would assume that some part of the plant must have teeth.
Aechmea serrata came into being through Mez in 1896 although it had been known under the name ‘serrata’ since 1703. I now quote from Smith & Downs
Aechmea serrata (Linnaeus) Mez, DC. Monogr. Phan. 9: 243.1896.
Synonyms
Caraguata clavata et spicata, foliis serratis Plumier, Gen. 10. 1703.
Tillandsia serrata Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 286. 1753.
Caraguata serrata (Linnaeus) Schultes filius in Roemer & Schultes, Syst. 7(2): 1231. 1830.
Platystachys plumieri Beer, Bromel. 9. 1856; nomen illegitimum.
Aechmea martinicensis Baker, Jour. Bot. London 17: 132. 1879. Type. Martinique, Hahn 522 (K), Dec 1871.
Aechmea plumieri E. Morren ex Baker, Handb. Bromel. 45. 1889; nomen, non Aechmea plumieri Baker, Handb. Bromel. 50. 1889.
The Type is based on Plumier's unpublished plate which is the one reproduced in Smith & Downs p1902, AND on the second line I read 'Caraguata clavata et spicata, foliis serratis' So, in this taxon the leaves are serrate too!
The serrate primary bracts also come into the equation with A. martinicensis where Baker 1889 stresses the serrate primary bracts to distinguish between it and A. dichlamydea! A. smithiorum did not come on the scene until 1896.
Let us now look at A. plumieri Morren which was treated by Baker 1889 as a synonym of A. lingulata but treated in Smith & Downs as a synonym of A. serrata. If you really want to muddy the water Baker 1889 also had a Caraguata serrata Hort which must have been different to the synonym in Smith & Downs because it became Nidularium scheremetiewii!!
What I am trying say is that we should at least follow Smith & Downs unless we can prove Lyman Smith wrong. Further proof that there was a plant growing on Martinique which was greatly different to the woolly non toothed primary bracted A. smithiorum we only have to read what was said in Paris in 1907. This is as follows:
Aechmea serrata - by D Bois in Revue Horticole ( Paris) 79(7): 129-31. 1907
Translated by Derek Butcher from the French.
This species is classified by Mez under Platyaechmea. It was found in Antilles, and P. Plumier was the first to make it known as Bromelia ramosa et racemosa, foliis arundinaceis serratis. (Plantarum americanarum, p. 53, pl. 64) (1755-1760).
A more complete description and a more exact illustration was given by Lamarck; but it is only in these last years that it was the subject of a deeper survey by Mez.
The herbarium of the Museum of Paris owned collected material from Martinique by Messrs Belanger and Hahn; and P. Duss indicates it grows on the trees in the lower woods, and also in the forests, close to the sea, in Guadeloupe and Martinique, between 25 and 600 metres altitude.
The plant was cultivated for a long time in the greenhouses of the Museum and also exist in the garden of Luxemburg; but we don't believe that one can find it in the living plant collections other than those two establishments, nor has its flowering ever been seen.
This species is so rare having just bloomed in the greenhouses of the Museum, that we are happy to contribute a description from life, with accompanying photographs and drawings executed according to nature.
Plant short stemmed, with offsets.
Leaves in a rosette utriculum, to 16, from 50 to 60 cm long, very wide and enveloping in their bottom part, at a height of about 10cm forming a gutter with parallel sides , acuminate with a spiny tip. The leaves, more or less recurved, 4 cm wide at the middle ; their edges with small reddish green teeth, very close together, hooked with a wide base; finely lined on both sides, pale green and lightly covered with whitish lepidote, especially underneath; the sheath is brownish on the inside.
Scape thick, cylindrical, 30cm high, erect, green, enveloped by the sheaths of the scape bracts, erect, imbricate and the higher ones especially are shorter; scape bracts tooth edged like the leaves, and those next to the inflorescence are a very pale green.
Inflorescence compact, ovoid panicle, one could nearly say a spike, on account of the reduction of the secondary branches. 10cm long and thick, and hardly exceeds the height of the leaves. It is composed of distichous complanate spikes with very short peduncles, 4 - 5 cm long, generally 3 flowered,
Primary bract large leaflike, pale green, strongly spined on the edges and terminated with a pointy brownish spine, especially larger when situated closer to the bottom part of inflorescence. Those at the base longer than the spike, 5 cm long or 2 ½ times longer.
Floral bracts 15 - 20mm long; long-oval, concave- keeled, strictly imbricate, greenish, rigid, membranous on the edges, streaky veined, with a prominent line on the back in the shape of wing and terminating in a brownish spiny tip. Each envelope the flower to the tip of the sepals.
Sepals asymmetric, thick, greenish white, 12 mm long, strongly imbricate, convolute, top blunt with a brown long acicular point.
Petals purple, 15 mm long, narrow claw and a widened top in an oval blade.
Stamens a little shorter than the petals, anthers pure white, 6 mm long.
Ovary glabrous, ellipsoid,
Style and stigma as with other species of Aechmea
If Aechmea serrata cannot be classed as the most ornamental Bromeliad, it is an interesting species, remarkable for the beauty of its foliage and specially for the greatly spiny toothed leafy bracts that come with inflorescence.
We must thank Mr. Labroy, Head Gardener of the greenhouses of the Museum, for having induced it to flower. It took place last January 20 after the application of special attention, such as reduction of the waterings during the period of vegetation rest, then repotting in very fertile compost, composed of a third of good earth of heather to two thirds of leaf compost, and placing in a hot and humid environment.
Plants in Australia with this name seem to be linked to Florida and the same link seems to apply to plants being grown in Costa Rica and Brazil. I feel sure that the plant in Baensch’s book can also be linked to 'collections' on mainland USA as the photograph of Wally Berg’s plant shows. Note that this plant was being sold in Florida by at least Boggy Creek Nursery.
These plants could well have supplied the seed for the BSI seed bank in 1989 and Peter Franklin in Australia has an offset of what is grown in Florida as A. serrata and seedlings from self-set seed for this same misidentified taxon. We also know that seed offered as Aechmea serrata from the BSI seed in Oct 1990 was even more suspect because this was the origin of the cultivar Aechmea ‘Que Sera’. So unless you have some form of provenance the name of Aechmea serrata on the label may well be suspect!
Aechmea serrata is probably on the endangered list because of the work of the French botanist, Claude Sastre who has given me detail on this elusive plant. It does appear to be under cultivation in Europe both in France and Belgium. There is also a large clump growing in the Jardin de Balata in Martinique but does NOT set seed.
If anybody thinks they are growing the ‘true’ Aechmea serrata would they please advise Selby Gardens so it can be properly identified and a program started for its conservation.
Literature cited
Baensch U & U. 1994. Blooming Bromeliads page 65 Nassau/Bahamas
Bois D. 1907. Revue Horticole ( Paris) 79(7): 129-31.
Kent J., 2004. J. Brom. Soc 54(4): 176.
Smith L B & R J Downs. 1979. Flora Neotropica, Monograph 14, Part 3 Bromelioideae (Bromeliaceae). New York Bot. Gdns. New York
Aechmea serrata - Revue Horticole ( Paris) 79(7): 129-31. 1907
Cette espece est classee par M. Mez dans le sous-genre Platyaechmea. Elle croit aux Antilles, ou elle fut decouverte par le P. Plumier qui, le premier, la fit connaitre sous le nom de Bromelia ramosa et racemosa, foliis arundinaceis seerratis. (Plantarum americanarum, p. 53, pl. 64) (1755-1760).
Une description plus complete et une figure plus exacte en furent donnees ensuite par Lamarck; mais c'est seulement dans ces dernieres annees qu'elle a ete l'objet d’une etude plus approfondie, de la part de M. Mez.
L'herbier du Museum de Paris en possede des echantillons recoltes a la Martinique par MM. Belanger et Hahn; et le P. Duss l'indique comme croissant ca et la sur les arbres
dans les bois inferieurs, sees, et aussi dans les endroits boises, pres du bord de la mer, a la Guadeloupe et a la Martinique, entre 25 et 600 metres d'altitude.
La plante est cultivee depuis longtemps dans les serres du Museum et existe aussi dans celles du jardin du Luxembourg ; mais nous ne croyons pas qu’on puisse la rencontrer dans les collections de plantes vivantes autres que celles de ce deux etablissements, ou sa floraison n’a d’ailleurs jamais ete signalee.
Cette especie si rare venant de fleurir dans les serres du Museum, nous sommes heureux de contribuer a la faire mieux connaitre en en donnant une description prise sur le vif, accompaguee de photographies et de dessins executes d’apres nature.
Caudex court, drageonnant. Feuilles en rosette utriculaire, au nombre de 16, de 50 a 69 cm de longueur, tres elargies et embrassantes dans leur partie inferieure, sur une hauteur d'environ 10cm puis en goultiere et la bords paralleles jusqu'au sommet qui est aigu et termine par une pointe epineuse. Les feuilles, plus ou moins dressees-recurvees, mesurent 4 cm de largeur dans leur partie moyenne ; leurs bords sont munis de petites epines vert-rougeatre, tres rapprochees, croclues et a base elargie ; elles sont finement strices sur les deus faces, de couleur vert pale et legerement lepidotes-blanchatres en dessus et surtout en dessous; leur partie basilaire est brunatre a l'interieur de la gaine.
Hampe epaisse, cylindrique, de 30cm de hauteur, dressee, verte, enveloppee de feuilles bracteales engainantes, dressees, imbriquees et d'autant plus courtes qu'elles s'inserent plus haut; elles sont dentees-espineuses comme les feuilles, et celles qui avoisinent l'inflorescence ont one couleur vert tres pale.
L'inflorescene est une panicule compacte, ovoide, on pourrait presque dire un epi, etant donnee la reduction des axes secondaires. Elle mesure 10cm de longueur, autant d'epaisseur et ne depasse guere la hauteur des feuilles. Elle est composee d’epis distiques tres courtement pedoncules, comprimes-aplatis, longs de 4 a 5 centimetres, generalement triflores, chacun d'eux naissant a l'aisselle d'une grande bractee foliacee, de couleur vert pale, fortement dentee espineuse sur 1es bords et terminee en pointe epineuse brunatre.
Les bractees sont d'autant plus grandes qu'elles sont situees plus pres de la partie inferieure de l’inflorescence. Celles de la base. plus longues que l’epi de fleurs situe a leur aisselle, mesurent 5 centimetres de longueur sur 2 ½ cm de largeur.
Les bractees secondaires ou bracteoles florales ont de 15 a 20mm de longueur ; elles sont largement ovales, concaves-navicalaires, strictement imbriquees, verdatres, rigides, membraneuses sur les bords, striees-veinees, munies sur le dos d’une ligne saillante en forme d'aile et terminees en pointe epineuse brunatre. Chacune de ces bracteoles enveloppe une fleur jusqu'a l’extremite des sepales.
Sepales asymetriques, epais, blanc-verdatre, de 12 millimetres de longueur, largement imbriques, convolutes, a sommet obtus, portant une longue pointe aciculaire brune.
Petales violets, de 15 millimetres de longueur, a onglet etroit et a extremite elargie en limbe ovale.
Etamines un peu plus courtes que les petales, a antheres blanc pur, de 6 millimetres de longueur.
Ovaire glabre, ellipsoide
Style et stigmate comme dans les autres especes du genre Aechmea
Si l’Aechmea serrata ne peut etre mis au rang des Bromeliacees les plus ornementales., il n’en constitue pas moins une espece tres interestante, remarquable par la beaute de son feuillage et par son aspect tout particulier, du aux bractees foliacees fortement dentees epineuses qui accompagnent l'inflorescence.
Nous devons a M. Labroy, chef du service des serres au Museum, d’en avoir provoque la floraison. Elle s’est effectuee le 20 janvier dernier apres l’application de soins judicieux, tels que diminution des arrosages pendant la periode de repos de la vegetation, puis rempotage en compost tres fertile, compose d’un tiers de bonne terre de bruyere pour deux tiers de terreau de feuilles, et mise en vegetation en milieu chaud et humide.
D. Bois —See J. Bromeliad Soc.
- Aechmea serrata by Derek Butcher in J Brom Soc 55(5): 207-9. 2005
In J. Brom. Soc 54(4): 176. 2004 Jeffrey Kent pointed out that we should be growing the rarer species to help in their conservation and this is a very worthy cause. However care must be taken that the correctly identified species is being nurtured. Aechmea serrata is just one where many have problems with identification.
Let us now look at ‘Blooming Bromeliads’ by Baensch 1994 page 65.This is what Baensch had to say.
“Aechmea serrata. This is a large bromeliad resembling A. smithiorum as far as the habit is concerned. However, the inflorescence is far more compact. The possibility remains that this plant is in fact a variety or form of A. smithiorum and is incorrectly referred to as A. serrata in the collections. According to the monograph by Smith & Downs, A. serrata has, as its name indicates, serrated instead of entire primary bracts”
To me this is odd statement. I would have put the name as A. smithiorum with the comment it was in collections wrongly as A. serrata!! To qualify for the name A. serrata you would assume that some part of the plant must have teeth.
Aechmea serrata came into being through Mez in 1896 although it had been known under the name ‘serrata’ since 1703. I now quote from Smith & Downs
Aechmea serrata (Linnaeus) Mez, DC. Monogr. Phan. 9: 243.1896.
Synonyms
Caraguata clavata et spicata, foliis serratis Plumier, Gen. 10. 1703.
Tillandsia serrata Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 286. 1753.
Caraguata serrata (Linnaeus) Schultes filius in Roemer & Schultes, Syst. 7(2): 1231. 1830.
Platystachys plumieri Beer, Bromel. 9. 1856; nomen illegitimum.
Aechmea martinicensis Baker, Jour. Bot. London 17: 132. 1879. Type. Martinique, Hahn 522 (K), Dec 1871.
Aechmea plumieri E. Morren ex Baker, Handb. Bromel. 45. 1889; nomen, non Aechmea plumieri Baker, Handb. Bromel. 50. 1889.
The Type is based on Plumier's unpublished plate which is the one reproduced in Smith & Downs p1902, AND on the second line I read 'Caraguata clavata et spicata, foliis serratis' So, in this taxon the leaves are serrate too!
The serrate primary bracts also come into the equation with A. martinicensis where Baker 1889 stresses the serrate primary bracts to distinguish between it and A. dichlamydea! A. smithiorum did not come on the scene until 1896.
Let us now look at A. plumieri Morren which was treated by Baker 1889 as a synonym of A. lingulata but treated in Smith & Downs as a synonym of A. serrata. If you really want to muddy the water Baker 1889 also had a Caraguata serrata Hort which must have been different to the synonym in Smith & Downs because it became Nidularium scheremetiewii!!
What I am trying say is that we should at least follow Smith & Downs unless we can prove Lyman Smith wrong. Further proof that there was a plant growing on Martinique which was greatly different to the woolly non toothed primary bracted A. smithiorum we only have to read what was said in Paris in 1907. This is as follows:
Aechmea serrata - by D Bois in Revue Horticole ( Paris) 79(7): 129-31. 1907
Translated by Derek Butcher from the French.
This species is classified by Mez under Platyaechmea. It was found in Antilles, and P. Plumier was the first to make it known as Bromelia ramosa et racemosa, foliis arundinaceis serratis. (Plantarum americanarum, p. 53, pl. 64) (1755-1760).
A more complete description and a more exact illustration was given by Lamarck; but it is only in these last years that it was the subject of a deeper survey by Mez.
The herbarium of the Museum of Paris owned collected material from Martinique by Messrs Belanger and Hahn; and P. Duss indicates it grows on the trees in the lower woods, and also in the forests, close to the sea, in Guadeloupe and Martinique, between 25 and 600 metres altitude.
The plant was cultivated for a long time in the greenhouses of the Museum and also exist in the garden of Luxemburg; but we don't believe that one can find it in the living plant collections other than those two establishments, nor has its flowering ever been seen.
This species is so rare having just bloomed in the greenhouses of the Museum, that we are happy to contribute a description from life, with accompanying photographs and drawings executed according to nature.
Plant short stemmed, with offsets.
Leaves in a rosette utriculum, to 16, from 50 to 60 cm long, very wide and enveloping in their bottom part, at a height of about 10cm forming a gutter with parallel sides , acuminate with a spiny tip. The leaves, more or less recurved, 4 cm wide at the middle ; their edges with small reddish green teeth, very close together, hooked with a wide base; finely lined on both sides, pale green and lightly covered with whitish lepidote, especially underneath; the sheath is brownish on the inside.
Scape thick, cylindrical, 30cm high, erect, green, enveloped by the sheaths of the scape bracts, erect, imbricate and the higher ones especially are shorter; scape bracts tooth edged like the leaves, and those next to the inflorescence are a very pale green.
Inflorescence compact, ovoid panicle, one could nearly say a spike, on account of the reduction of the secondary branches. 10cm long and thick, and hardly exceeds the height of the leaves. It is composed of distichous complanate spikes with very short peduncles, 4 - 5 cm long, generally 3 flowered,
Primary bract large leaflike, pale green, strongly spined on the edges and terminated with a pointy brownish spine, especially larger when situated closer to the bottom part of inflorescence. Those at the base longer than the spike, 5 cm long or 2 ½ times longer.
Floral bracts 15 - 20mm long; long-oval, concave- keeled, strictly imbricate, greenish, rigid, membranous on the edges, streaky veined, with a prominent line on the back in the shape of wing and terminating in a brownish spiny tip. Each envelope the flower to the tip of the sepals.
Sepals asymmetric, thick, greenish white, 12 mm long, strongly imbricate, convolute, top blunt with a brown long acicular point.
Petals purple, 15 mm long, narrow claw and a widened top in an oval blade.
Stamens a little shorter than the petals, anthers pure white, 6 mm long.
Ovary glabrous, ellipsoid,
Style and stigma as with other species of Aechmea
If Aechmea serrata cannot be classed as the most ornamental Bromeliad, it is an interesting species, remarkable for the beauty of its foliage and specially for the greatly spiny toothed leafy bracts that come with inflorescence.
We must thank Mr. Labroy, Head Gardener of the greenhouses of the Museum, for having induced it to flower. It took place last January 20 after the application of special attention, such as reduction of the waterings during the period of vegetation rest, then repotting in very fertile compost, composed of a third of good earth of heather to two thirds of leaf compost, and placing in a hot and humid environment.
Plants in Australia with this name seem to be linked to Florida and the same link seems to apply to plants being grown in Costa Rica and Brazil. I feel sure that the plant in Baensch’s book can also be linked to 'collections' on mainland USA as the photograph of Wally Berg’s plant shows. Note that this plant was being sold in Florida by at least Boggy Creek Nursery.
These plants could well have supplied the seed for the BSI seed bank in 1989 and Peter Franklin in Australia has an offset of what is grown in Florida as A. serrata and seedlings from self-set seed for this same misidentified taxon. We also know that seed offered as Aechmea serrata from the BSI seed in Oct 1990 was even more suspect because this was the origin of the cultivar Aechmea ‘Que Sera’. So unless you have some form of provenance the name of Aechmea serrata on the label may well be suspect!
Aechmea serrata is probably on the endangered list because of the work of the French botanist, Claude Sastre who has given me detail on this elusive plant. It does appear to be under cultivation in Europe both in France and Belgium. There is also a large clump growing in the Jardin de Balata in Martinique but does NOT set seed.
If anybody thinks they are growing the ‘true’ Aechmea serrata would they please advise Selby Gardens so it can be properly identified and a program started for its conservation.
Literature cited
Baensch U & U. 1994. Blooming Bromeliads page 65 Nassau/Bahamas
Bois D. 1907. Revue Horticole ( Paris) 79(7): 129-31.
Kent J., 2004. J. Brom. Soc 54(4): 176.
Smith L B & R J Downs. 1979. Flora Neotropica, Monograph 14, Part 3 Bromelioideae (Bromeliaceae). New York Bot. Gdns. New York
Aechmea serrata - Revue Horticole ( Paris) 79(7): 129-31. 1907
Cette espece est classee par M. Mez dans le sous-genre Platyaechmea. Elle croit aux Antilles, ou elle fut decouverte par le P. Plumier qui, le premier, la fit connaitre sous le nom de Bromelia ramosa et racemosa, foliis arundinaceis seerratis. (Plantarum americanarum, p. 53, pl. 64) (1755-1760).
Une description plus complete et une figure plus exacte en furent donnees ensuite par Lamarck; mais c'est seulement dans ces dernieres annees qu'elle a ete l'objet d’une etude plus approfondie, de la part de M. Mez.
L'herbier du Museum de Paris en possede des echantillons recoltes a la Martinique par MM. Belanger et Hahn; et le P. Duss l'indique comme croissant ca et la sur les arbres
dans les bois inferieurs, sees, et aussi dans les endroits boises, pres du bord de la mer, a la Guadeloupe et a la Martinique, entre 25 et 600 metres d'altitude.
La plante est cultivee depuis longtemps dans les serres du Museum et existe aussi dans celles du jardin du Luxembourg ; mais nous ne croyons pas qu’on puisse la rencontrer dans les collections de plantes vivantes autres que celles de ce deux etablissements, ou sa floraison n’a d’ailleurs jamais ete signalee.
Cette especie si rare venant de fleurir dans les serres du Museum, nous sommes heureux de contribuer a la faire mieux connaitre en en donnant une description prise sur le vif, accompaguee de photographies et de dessins executes d’apres nature.
Caudex court, drageonnant. Feuilles en rosette utriculaire, au nombre de 16, de 50 a 69 cm de longueur, tres elargies et embrassantes dans leur partie inferieure, sur une hauteur d'environ 10cm puis en goultiere et la bords paralleles jusqu'au sommet qui est aigu et termine par une pointe epineuse. Les feuilles, plus ou moins dressees-recurvees, mesurent 4 cm de largeur dans leur partie moyenne ; leurs bords sont munis de petites epines vert-rougeatre, tres rapprochees, croclues et a base elargie ; elles sont finement strices sur les deus faces, de couleur vert pale et legerement lepidotes-blanchatres en dessus et surtout en dessous; leur partie basilaire est brunatre a l'interieur de la gaine.
Hampe epaisse, cylindrique, de 30cm de hauteur, dressee, verte, enveloppee de feuilles bracteales engainantes, dressees, imbriquees et d'autant plus courtes qu'elles s'inserent plus haut; elles sont dentees-espineuses comme les feuilles, et celles qui avoisinent l'inflorescence ont one couleur vert tres pale.
L'inflorescene est une panicule compacte, ovoide, on pourrait presque dire un epi, etant donnee la reduction des axes secondaires. Elle mesure 10cm de longueur, autant d'epaisseur et ne depasse guere la hauteur des feuilles. Elle est composee d’epis distiques tres courtement pedoncules, comprimes-aplatis, longs de 4 a 5 centimetres, generalement triflores, chacun d'eux naissant a l'aisselle d'une grande bractee foliacee, de couleur vert pale, fortement dentee espineuse sur 1es bords et terminee en pointe epineuse brunatre.
Les bractees sont d'autant plus grandes qu'elles sont situees plus pres de la partie inferieure de l’inflorescence. Celles de la base. plus longues que l’epi de fleurs situe a leur aisselle, mesurent 5 centimetres de longueur sur 2 ½ cm de largeur.
Les bractees secondaires ou bracteoles florales ont de 15 a 20mm de longueur ; elles sont largement ovales, concaves-navicalaires, strictement imbriquees, verdatres, rigides, membraneuses sur les bords, striees-veinees, munies sur le dos d’une ligne saillante en forme d'aile et terminees en pointe epineuse brunatre. Chacune de ces bracteoles enveloppe une fleur jusqu'a l’extremite des sepales.
Sepales asymetriques, epais, blanc-verdatre, de 12 millimetres de longueur, largement imbriques, convolutes, a sommet obtus, portant une longue pointe aciculaire brune.
Petales violets, de 15 millimetres de longueur, a onglet etroit et a extremite elargie en limbe ovale.
Etamines un peu plus courtes que les petales, a antheres blanc pur, de 6 millimetres de longueur.
Ovaire glabre, ellipsoide
Style et stigmate comme dans les autres especes du genre Aechmea
Si l’Aechmea serrata ne peut etre mis au rang des Bromeliacees les plus ornementales., il n’en constitue pas moins une espece tres interestante, remarquable par la beaute de son feuillage et par son aspect tout particulier, du aux bractees foliacees fortement dentees epineuses qui accompagnent l'inflorescence.
Nous devons a M. Labroy, chef du service des serres au Museum, d’en avoir provoque la floraison. Elle s’est effectuee le 20 janvier dernier apres l’application de soins judicieux, tels que diminution des arrosages pendant la periode de repos de la vegetation, puis rempotage en compost tres fertile, compose d’un tiers de bonne terre de bruyere pour deux tiers de terreau de feuilles, et mise en vegetation en milieu chaud et humide.
D. Bois —See Butcher 2005 p. 207-209
