Anthurium palenquense Croat

• Genus: Anthurium
• Botanical Background: Described by Thomas B. Croat in 1991 (Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 78: 694); named for the Río Palenque Biological Station where the type was collected.

• Geographical Range: Endemic to Ecuador’s Esmeraldas, Cotopaxi, Los Ríos, and Pichincha provinces.
• Environment: Occurs in tropical moist and premontane wet forests. Both mature and disturbed primary forests, favors high humidity, sandy or seasonally inundated soils on slopes.

Leaves

• Elliptic to lanceolate or oblanceolate blades with attenuate base
• Coriaceous texture
• Adaxial surface matte to semi‑velvety
• 14–30 primary lateral veins per side
• Sharply triangular, winged petioles

Inflorescence (Spadix & Spathe)

• Spathe green, tinged maroon at margins, 3–12 cm long
• Spadix yellow‑green tinged purple at anthesis, 2.4–12 cm long
• Faint sweet, fruity scen
• Pollinated by the orchid bee Eulaema bombicides

Growth Habit

• Terrestrial subshrub
• Stems 15–30 cm long, 1–2.5 cm diameter
• Internodes short
• Numerous descending roots
• No tubers or rhizomes

Light Requirements

• Six hours of bright, indirect light daily

• Avoid direct sun to prevent leaf scorch

Watering & Humidity

• Keep soil evenly moist

• Water when topsoil feels slightly dry

• Maintain humidity above 60 percent

Soil & Potting Mix

• Use a coarse, well‑draining mix of orchid bark, peat or moss, and perlite

• Ensure good aeration around roots

Temperature & Fertilizer

• Ideal 65–80 °F (18–27 °C)

• Feed monthly with a balanced houseplant fertilizer during active growth

Division and Cuttings

• Divide the rhizome into sections each bearing at least one growth node
• Stem or node cuttings may also root readily

Seeds

• Produces seeds in purple ovoid berries (5–11 mm long)
• Seeds 4–5.6 mm long with gelatinous appendages
• Germination requires warm, humid conditions

Typical Issues

• Spider mites, mealybugs, scale insects
• Root rot

Treatment Recommendations

• Apply insecticidal soap or neem oil for pests
• Repot in fresh, well‑draining mix and reduce watering to manage root rot
• Fungicides as needed
• Maintain airflow, avoid waterlogging

• Pollinated by the orchid bee Eulaema bombicides
• Distinctive brushlike stigma and bicolored leaf blades
• Species epithet honors Río Palenque station

• Valued by collectors for its triangular‑winged petioles, textured velvet‑like leaves

• Rarity in cultivation

Wild Population Status

• IUCN status – Least Concern, though local habitat loss poses threats to lowland populations

  
  

Market Availability

• Rare in general trade
• Typically available only through specialist aroid nurseries and the International Aroid Society network