''Ipsea speciosa'',Lindl, Gen. et Sp. Orch. 124.1831: Trimen, Handbook to the Flora of Ceylon the daffodil orchid, is a rare wild

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Orchids are cosmopolitan plants that are found in almost every habitat on Eart ...

found in the hills of

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

and southern

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> It is a terrestrial herb with pseudobulbous stem. The lanceolate leaves of the plant are grass like and pointed at the end. Its large flowers appear from September to February, they are bright yellow and sweet-scented. This plant can be seen in grass lands and pathana areas in mid hills of the country. The plant is known as නගා මැරූ අල in the

Sinhala language Sinhala ( ; Sinhala: , , ), sometimes called Sinhalese ( ), is an Indo-Aryan language primarily spoken by the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka, who make up the largest ethnic group on the island, numbering about 16 million. It is also the first ...

, meaning "Yam which killed the little sister" according to a folk tale. Like the glory lily, the daffodil orchid is used as an ingredient in making love charm portions and aphrodisiacs in local medicine.

Folk tale

A young princess walking along the jungle path with her elder brother suddenly attempted to provoke him to make love and have sexual intercourse with her. The prince got extremely angry and killed her instantly. Later, searching for her unusual behavior, he found that she was innocent and her erotic feeling has aroused due to consuming of a tiny piece of the yam of a plant by mistake. Thereafter this plant, ''Ipsea speciosa'', is known as "the yam which killed the younger sister" among locals.

References

* * speciosa Orchids of India Orchids of Sri Lanka Plants described in 1831 {{Epidendroideae-stub