Neoregelia tristis was named by Beer rather aptly because "tristis" means dull coloured or sad! Morren was more poetic and optimistic by calling his plant "elegans" but "tristis" prevailed and the plant is now known by this name. This sad looking plant has been in Australia since Adam was a boy or when Bill Morris started taking an interest in Bromeliads! It looks very much like Morren's painting and it agrees with the description in Flora Neotropica Bromelioideae page 1565.
) Neoregelia tristis painting |
) Neoregelia tristis |
) Neoregelia tristis flower |
Now to the problem! In recent years a plant has been circulating under the name of Neoregelia tristis v. maculata or Neoregelia tristis 'Freckles' or just Neoregelia 'Freckles'. None of these names has been written about! I have dissected all three of these plants at flowering time and I am convinced that they are one and the same plant. Problem? Well it isn't a Neoregelia tristis and I found at least seven major differences from the official description to prove the point.
These are;
- Leaf blade lepidote above not glabrous
- Inflorescence 8 flowered not "rather many"
- Scape bracts white not purple brown
- Upper scape bracts just reaching the ovaries not slightly exceeding
- Floral bracts as long as the pedicel not "not reaching centre of sepals"
- Floral bracts white not dark purple
- Sepals not long acuminate
- Petals 3cm long not 1.8cm in 'Australian' N. tristis
) Neoregelia 'Freckles' |
) Neoregelia 'Freckles' |
) Neoregelia 'Freckles' flower |
Harry Luther tells me he has similar problems with Neoregelia species in Florida. He decides that "Yes" a particular species is correctly named and is fairly widespread. A few years later it seems the goal posts have been moved because that clone has disappeared to be replaced by an imposter of probable hybrid origin but with the same species name!
| The Australian problem was clearly imported from the USA but the plant is not the Neoregelia 'Freckles' pictured in Vol.1 part 1 of Grande. It is not a cultivar of a Neoregelia ampullacea either. (see BCR page 227). I can trace no other 'Freckles' and can only assume it was originally thought to be a species but then thought by someone else not to be. This someone changed the label without advising others of their action! | ) Neoregelia 'Freckles' |
In 2003 things started happening when Elton Leme happened to see this plant in New Zealand as Neoregelia 'Freckles'. He was staying at the home of Peter Waters for the New Zealand Bromeliad Conference. He remarked to Peter that this was in all probability a plant he was in the process of publishing as Neoregelia guttata and this was mentioned in the June 2003 issue of the NZ Journal. On reading this, I referred immediately to J. Brom. Soc.53(2): 59-62. 2003 and photo on page 66 because this was where Neoregelia guttata had been published. There are no comparisons made with Neoregelia tristis. This taxon was compared to Neoregelia zaslawskyi and then to a species we do know, Neoregelia chlorosticta. I was sceptical at first because the dull leaved plant in the photograph did not look like the bright yellow green plant we grew as 'Freckles' in good 'Adelaide' light. In fact the plant looked like Neoregelia tristis!! Bells started ringing and I looked up my old records of 'Freckles' and compared measurements. They were very close indeed and not like my previous attempts. I then asked Elton Leme to check the photographs we had on fcbs.org. His answer was "Your plant looks very close, if not the same. Probably Neoregelia guttata was introduced to cultivation many years ago as it is not difficult to find in its place of collection, which is very often visited by tourists and botanists"
We will be showing photographs of Neoregelia guttata from Elton as well as from myself to show how light intensity may blur your judgement in matters of identification. I do suggest you change the name on the tag to Neoregelia guttata because we already have too many misleading Neoregelia 'Freckles' in the Bromeliad Cultivar Register!"
) Neoregelia guttata |
) Neoregelia guttata |
) Neoregelia guttata |
) Neoregelia guttata |