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Tropaeolum pentaphyllum
Also known as chagas-miúda, cinco-chagas; sapatinho-do-diabo (devil's slipper), sapatinho-de-Yaya (Yaya's slipper), trepadeira-crem (crem-climber) e crem-do-mato (bushes-crem). It is a perennial liana that looks very fragile externally, which blooms in the spring and vegetate until late fall, when it dries completely. Bulbs always deeply buried guarantee survival for long periods, including extreme cold, growing again in the spring. Their bulbs are used as seasoning (bitter root) for possessing a palate much appreciated in cooking, especially in the preparation of meats. As time passes, the bulbs will become increasingly large, old bulbs can weight several pounds. Also have ornamental potential, for the beauty and amount of flowers as the bulb grows. Blooms on long stems of tens of meters, completely covering fences and trellises. Of European origin, came to the tropics brought by Italians and Germans who really appreciate their consumption. The preparation is very simple to use. The cultivation is restricted to plant the bulb and go picking some from 8 months of planting, always leaving some to continue production.
So nice to know what this is and so interesting! Can't believe it is of European origin and not tropical.
Now for a correction: It is not a bush, as I told to Dan Doucette, but a liana. All I can say in my defense is that the liana and the supporting bush were so entangled that it was hard to say where one started and the other ended. Also, the bush was dry, and it didn't have any leaf left. Anyway, it was my fault, I should have looked more closely. I think I need new glasses...
Yes, nice job, ShawnKrosnick!!
Love when ID for the spottings are found.. : )
I'm guessing that the 5-sepal star arrangement at the mouth of the tube will be important in identifying the plant (along with the other striking features). I'm not seeing this combination elsewhere...
Thank you Carol. stho002, thanks for the suggestion. It really CAN be an Impatiens sp. I found many flowers in this genus that have some resemblance to this, but no exact match. I submited some photos to a local botanist, I hope that I'll have an answer soon.
Joshua, thank you for the comment. Gilma and Scott: the flower's inner tube was dry, not slippery or sticky. Also, the flower(s) stood horizontally, not vertically like, for example, plants from the genus Nepenthes. I couldn't go back where I spotted it because the weather was too wet, but I'll take more photos as soon as I can. I didn't see any insect near them (there are two different plants in the photos), although there were many flowers in the bush.
Amazing!! You found a beauty, would be interesting to know what it is, just by looking at it, that little tunnel in the flower (entrance)...looks like a trap to me?! was it sticky in there? Could be a insectivorous plant.
Congratulations on the SOTD
This is an exciting spotting. I can't wait to find out what it is (so far no luck with my ID'ing efforts) and what pollinates it. The flower, as many have noted, seems to combine elements from different families. For instance I can see superficial resemblance (in part only, of course!) to certain orchids and pitcher plants. It seems to fall into that category of plants that exhibit floral isolation/pollination syndrome.
abby3, I am sure that Costa Rica has a lot of beauties, as much as Brazil. I am looking forward to see them, ok?
Thank you very much for the nice comments, my friends. I am very glad that you like my neighborhood. I think I am blessed for living in such a wonderful world, but even more for being able to share a part of it with you. Thank you again. It is an honor and a pleasure to be part of this comunity.
Congrats on the SOTD Sergio, it is well deserved for such a stunning spotting!!! Keep up the discovering unknown species ;)
Another amazing series Sérgio,beautiful,i hope you find the id soon:-) congrats on another well derserved SOTD and thanks for sharing.
Xará,muito bem,lindíssimo,quem diria tu teres um SOTD com uma flôr :-D um homem dos insectos,altamente,gosto destas cenas fora do comum ,parabéns mais uma vez
i about freaked it was so beautiful i have never sen anything like that in my lief in costa rica we do not have that kind of plant but i loved it so much well by.
Spotted on Sep 3, 2013
Submitted on Sep 5, 2013
