There is some difference in color between the plants that grow in Costa Rica and those that grow in Colombia which is not surprising considering their wide separation. The brightest yellow varieties come from Colombia, including most of the clear yellow-petal types, and those with an abundance of yellow in the lips. By contrast, the plants from Costa Rica tend to have more lavender in their yellow sepals and petals. The famous ‘Rosita’ clone FCC/RHS (1900) from Costa Rica had petals that were mostly purple, and selfings of it produced some red-purple forms. There are plants that come from both areas that look exactly alike. They have yellow sepals and petals with some purple in them and it is impossible to tell them apart. Cattleya dowiana is unique among the large-flowered Cattleya species because it is the only large-flowered species that does not have either an alba or semialba form.
The yellow color in the sepals and petals of C. dowiana is very recessive and disappears when it is crossed with any lavender or white large-flowered Cattleya species. The yellow color will occasionally re-appear when a primary hybrid of C. dowiana is selfed, and there are a few rare yellow-petal hybrids such as:
Cattleya warneri is not known for its well-shaped flowers, a characteristic it shares with C. labiata. Most alba C. warneri are more poorly shaped and smaller than the lavender flowers. Semialba varieties of C. warneri are very rare, and the most well known one is the clone ‘Itabirana’ which is pictured in L.C. Menezes fine book entitled Cattleya Warneri. Although some C. warneri have petals that fall forward, most stand upright, giving the flower an attractive form even though the petals are not wide. Flowers of C. warneri range in size from 6 to 8 inches across, and one plant is recorded that had four flowers, each measuring 9.75 inches across.
C. warneri f. alba FCC/RHS (1903) – exhibited by A. A. Peeters of Brussels, described as “in the most robust health, and bearing a raceme of five very large flowers, with purest white, and clear yellow disc to the lip” – Orchid Review 11: 212 (1903)
C. warneri f. alba ‘McPeak’s Variety’ – floriferous and easy to grow but has narrow petals and sepals that can bend beckward when fully open, not desirable, looks similar to alba form shown on book page 90
C. warneri f. semialba ‘Itabirana’- semialba forms are very rare and the most well known one is this one as featured in L.C. Menezes’s fine book entitled Cattleya Warneri (1994)
As a Cattleya species, C. quadricolor has all the usual color forms of the large-flowered group. The plant originally described by James Bateman in 1864 was a lovely semialba. There are also true albas, albescens and many lavender forms. Pale lavender flowers predominate and there are very few really dark lavender clones. Cattleya quadricolor is noted for its wide-petaled flowers, and, in many clones, the petals actually touch or overlap. Cattleya trianaei, of course, is famous for having wide-petaled flowers, but wide-petaled C. trianaei are relatively few in number compared with C. quadricolor. Cattleya quadricolor has a fairly strong, pleasant fragrance, while C. trianaei has a more subtle, muted scent.
C. trianaei also ranks with C. mossiae in having the greatest number of named clones of the Cattleya species. An inventory of the famous Dixon collection in 1930 listed 68 outstanding clones of C. trianaei and there were hundreds more in other collections and in the literature. By 1916, the Royal Horticultural Society in England had awarded 22 First Class Certificates and 24 Awards of Merit to C. trianaei, and the American Orchid Society has made C. trianaei one of its most-awarded unifoliate Cattleya species.
C. trianae f. alba – a particularly beautiful one featured on Lindenia vol. 1 (1885)
C. trianae f. alba ‘Broomhill’s’ – leading white variety and commanded king’s random because it bred true white color and had high fertility
C. trianae f. alba ‘Aranka Germaske’ FCC/AOS – received much recognition because of its fine shape that resembles that alba in Lindenia vol. 1 (1885). Like many of the finest shaped forms of C. trianae, not a good breeder
C. trianae ‘Clinkaberryana’ – medium lavender color, exceptionally large flowered variety which shows classic coloring of C. trianae, shown on book page 86
C. trianae ‘Mary Fennel’ HCC/AOS – really dark form, and quite rare, is one of the finest dark varieties of C. trianae, It was collected in jungles of Colombia by American plant hunter Lee Arthur Fennell in early 1900s, shown on book page 27 and 84
In 1854, a beautiful species of Cattleya flourished in the greenhouses of the French orchidologist Mr. M. Pescatore, located at Chateau Celle St. Cloud, near Paris. There Heinrich Gustav Reichenbach identified her as Cattleya lueddemanniana, a plant that had previously been classified by Pescatore as Cattleya maxima. It was dedicated to Mr. Lueddemann, a French native from the Alsace area, who was head gardener for M. Pescatore. As a curious note, it is worth mentioning that about ten years later this species was introduced in England where it was given the name of Cattleya speciossisima, making this name so popular that, even today, some growers in Venezuela continue to call it that.
Cattleya lueddemanniana is endemic to Venezuela, it inhabits almost the entire central area of the Coastal Range, from Cape Codera in the state of Miranda, to the outskirts of the city of Puerto Cabello in the state of Carabobo, passing through the states of Vargas and Aragua. Then, its habitat enters the mainland, reaching the states of Yaracuy, Falcón and Lara. Between parallels 10° and 11° north latitude and between meridians 66° and 70° west longitude.
distibution of Cattleya lueddemanniana
Even though these two areas are not completely isolated, there is an important ecological difference that has made it possible to separate the species into two biotypes, the coastal and the Larense.
In the Cordillera de la Costa we can find it on the northern slopes of the mountains, always looking towards the Caribbean Sea, from sea level to 500 meters high in xerophytic forests to gallery forests where they take the humidity from the sea breeze. They used to form abundant epiphytic colonies on trees and shrubs of various sizes, including Cardonales (cactus). For their part, the plants of the Larense biotype, in the states of Yaracuy, Lara and Falcón, are found at higher altitudes than on the coast, between 400 and 900 meters above sea level, in completely xerophytic zones in the states of Lara and Falcón, or in moderately high forests. humid in Yaracuy state.
In general, plants of the coastal biotype are characterized by large, round flowers, almost always pale in color, with a wide lip and cream-colored lateral “eyes”. Their Larense counterparts tend to be smaller in size, thinner-segmented, and more intensely colored, with a somewhat narrow lip and bright yellow “eyes.”
This species is unifoliate, its pseudobulbs produce roots after flowering, they are narrow-obovoid, almost cylindrical, slightly attenuated towards the base, up to 25 cm long. The leaves are straight, rather stiff, up to 20 cm long. In their youth, the undersides of the leaves show purple dots or spots that fade as it matures.
It has a solitary green spathe when it blooms. Its flowering time is from the end of December to March, but it can bloom again between September and October. The clusters can have up to 4 flowers lasting about 15 days. The coloration of the flowers of the type variety ranges from very soft lilac to very intense purple. The disc spot may be solid, streaked, or finely dotted, dark reddish-purple in color. On each side of the tube’s entrance, called the throat, it has an “eye” of varying shades that range from cream to deep yellow. Purple striae extend from the base of the throat and abruptly end at the disc of the frontal lobe.
Cattleya lueddemanniana shows us certain details in its flowers that make it easily distinguishable from the other cattleyas of the labiata group. In the first place, its characteristic “little bits” in the column, which are nothing more than a slight hypertrophy of the clinandrium, which takes on the appearance of a triangular tooth. Other characteristics of the species are the lateral lobes of the lip that, just before turning forward to show the yellow “eyes”, make a concave curve on the column. Lastly, the purple-amethyst striae that come from the base of the lip are abruptly interrupted when they reach the spot on the disk. This is evident in all varieties except albino and concolor.
This species is preferred by the majority of Venezuelan collectors, which is why it has been intensely reproduced in the laboratory, both in Venezuela and in Brazil, where today it is possible to obtain all the color varieties at reasonable prices. . However, quality plants are highly prized by collectors, despite their complicated flowering temperament being well known. Without any explanation, a plant can be extraordinary one year and the next be a poor flower in shape and size. Perhaps that condition is part of its charm.
In Venezuela, when talking about Cattleya lueddemanniana, it is impossible not to mention the work of Mr. Armando Mantellini, who has dedicated himself for more than 40 years to improving this species. We owe a good part of the select clones that we treasure in our collections to his effort and perseverance.
Among the many clones with outstanding characteristics we can mention:
C. lueddemanniana f. semialba ‘Cerro Verde’ AM/AOS – which has been mericloned and widely distributed under the name ‘Stanleyi’, which it only vaguely resembles. ‘Cerro Verde’ AM/AOS has wispy lavender markings at the tips of the sepals and petals and along the edges of the petals that almost make it glow, and a rich, dark-purple lip that gives a good contrast is not ‘Stanleyi’, which is dull by comparison. ‘Cerro Verde’, AM/AOS, is also a vigorous grower and is relatively easy to flower, which makes it a good plant even for beginners
C. lueddemanniana ‘Arthur Chadwick’ AM/AOS – remarkably large flower has an exceptional shape and a large classic C. lueddemanniana lip. It was a wild-collected plant imported in 1935, shown on Chadwick’s book page 79
C. lueddemanniana ‘Ernestii’ FCC/RHS (1896) – described as “the finest variety of C. speciossisima we have ever seen” by The Orchid Grower’s Manual, shown on Chadwick’s book page 80
C. Lady Veitch ‘Superbissima’ (C. lueddemanniana ‘The Queen’ x C. warneri) – a magnificent, large, round white cattleya, and wondering why everyone thought Cattleya Bow Bells was so great. Cattleya Lady Veitch was much better.
C. x gravesiana – natural hybrid of C. lueddemanniana with C. mossiae
Early-flowering type: blooms from late June – early July and has 8-inch tall pseudobulbs. C. warscewiczii ‘Firmin Lambeau’, ‘Frau Melanie Beyrodt’ and lavender var. imperialis form belong to this type, shown on book page 27, 73 and 70 respectively.
Late-flowering type: blooms from mid to late July and has taller pseudobulbs than the early-flowering type, also larger flower and larger darker lips. The var. sanderiana forms belong to this type.
Notable varieties:
Unlike C. mossiae and C. trianaei, which have hundreds of named clones, those of C. warscewiczii are relatively few in number. The most famous clone of all is C. warscewiczii ‘Firmin Lambeau’, FCC/RHS (1912), the first true alba form ever found. While Sander could tell his collectors in Venezuela to ship him a case or two of C. mossiae alba, no one had ever seen an alba C. warscewiczii until ‘Firmin Lambeau’ came along. Semialba C. warscewiczii are not as rare as the alba form, but they are still rare compared with most other Cattleya species. There are also nice dark colored forms, pale blush form and coerulea form of this species.
C. warscewiczii ‘Meteor’ AM/RHS (1914) – another dark clone
C. warscewiczii ‘Rosslyn’ AM/RHS (1904) – one of the most beautiful pastel-colored variety, although it has relatively narrow petals, it can produce a breathtaking flower spike, shown on book page 74
It was the first Venezuelan Cattleya to be described. In 1836 the first plants were sent to Europe from the port of La Guaira, apparently by a gentleman named Ward, who was an English gentleman based in Caracas. He forwarded them to Miss Isabel Alderson, who in turn gave them to Mr. Thomas Moss, owner of large greenhouses in Otterpool, in the north of England. Mr. Moss’s wife made a magnificent portrait of the first plant to flower, so Sir William J. Hooker decided to dedicate this new species to her in 1838. Of her he wrote: “I wish the illustration would do justice to this one, the most wonderful among all orchids. The flowers of this magnificent family are the largest known to the present; these too are conspicuous, and no brush or art can equal them…the diameter of this splendid flower is seven and a half inches from the tip of the dorsal sepal to the apex of the lip, and between the tips of the two petals eight inches and half; each petal is over four inches long and two and a half inches wide” (Aulisi & Foldats, 1989).
Cattleya mossiae is endemic to Venezuela and has been the national flower since May 24, 1951 (before it was). It lives between 800 and 1500 meters above sea level. It is present in a very wide area of the center-north and western regions of the country, in the Coastal Mountain Range, from Cape Codera in the state of Miranda, to Puerto Cabello in the state of Carabobo, passing through the Metropolitan District of Caracas and the Vargas and Aragua states. It then continues west through the mountains of the Yaracuy, Lara and Portuguesa states until it enters the Andes mountain range in the states of Trujillo, Mérida and Táchira. Between the parallels 8° and 11° north latitude and the meridians 65° and 71° west longitude.
distribution of Cattleya mossiae
This huge distribution area would suggest large and healthy populations, but nothing could be further from the truth: their habitats have been systematically looted, to the point that entire areas have been left without this beautiful species, especially those closest to large cities. as is the case of El Avila hill, a mountain that adorns the city of Caracas where, until the 1950s, it was common to see them in large colonies on trunks and branches of the Bucares (Erythrina poeppigiana), Ceibas (Ceiba sp.) and other species. Currently the largest populations are found in the Portuguesa and Mérida states.
Cattleya mossiae presents unifoliolate pseudobulbs, narrow-ellipsoid, laterally compressed, attenuated towards the base, up to 25 cm long, with two, rarely three, internodes. The leaves are leathery, narrow-obovate to elliptic. Simple spathe, which dries months before flowering (this characteristic is very typical of Cattleya mossiae). However, plants sometimes develop a new pseudobulb close to flowering time, which may flower as a green spathe.
Its flowering season extends from March to early June, but the alba and semialba varieties tend to flower a little earlier than the purple ones. It presents bunches of up to 7 flowers, upright, elegant and well arranged on the foliage. The flowers, which reach up to 23 cm in diameter, tend to be somewhat gangly with the petals and dorsal sepal drooping backwards. The type variety is light pinkish-purple, with a very ruffled and wonderfully colored lip. The throat shows us a golden yellow to orange base color crossed by reddish purple streaks. In the frontal lobe it presents generally white borders, the purple spot mixes with the yellow color in an indescribable filigree of dots and stripes. Sometimes this spot appears solid, only mixed with the yellow at the throat entrance.
In addition to the type variety, there are other less common varieties, such as alba, semialba, coerulea and concolor. In some clones of the concolor variety the yellow of the throat descends very low on the disk. This variety is known as “Aurea”. In some semialba, the color of the labellum spot is a very delicate pink. We call these plants “Alexandras”.
It has been widely reproduced in the laboratory, especially the semialba variety, which is preferred by growers. Almost all the good clones we have today come from two wild plants that were very famous between 1970 and 1990: Blanca and Aurora. Two other semi-alba plants, with spots on the apexes of petals and sepals, have produced the marvelous crooked forms that we can admire today: María Gallego and Featherston.
The type variety has been relegated to the background, the few crosses that have been made have not represented a significant improvement in the quality of the offspring. Currently the best type plants are being crossed with very good half-albs to try to inject their best shape and substance into the purple color. In the caerulea variety, it is worth highlighting the promising result of the self-fertilization of the plant called “Andreina”, carried out by Mr. Héctor Alvarez, an excellent grower from the state of Miranda. Several daughters have shown outstanding qualities, well above the average for the species.
Between 1865 and 1913, the RHS gave its coveted awards, including 37 AMs and 16 FCCs, to 53 C. mossiae clones. The number of named clones of C. mossiae is almost endless and there were already more than 150 recorded in the literature by 1900.There are more alba forms of C. mossiae than any other Cattleya species, probably because of its abundance.
C. mossiae ‘Mrs. J. T. Butterworth’ FCC/AOS (1941) – was sold for $10k USD that time. It has 9.5 inch wide flower and it was the only FCC from AOS until the end of 20th century, shown on book page 67
C. mossiae ‘Ed Patterson’ AM/AOS – classic rose-lavender wild plant, shown on book page 65
C. mossiae ‘R.E. Patterson’ – dark lip color extend to the edge of the lip so there is no splash pattern and it has unusual upright petals albeit the normal-size flowers, shown on book page 68
C. mossiae ‘Orchidhaven’ – a tetraploid form
C. mossiae ‘Julie’ – a tetraploid form
C. mossiae ‘Anthony Alfieri’ AM/AOS – best shaped ever exhibited, it was a slectiong from a selfing of John Mossman’s C. mossiae ‘Julie’, shown on book page 69
Upland type: plump, short pseudobulbs with relatively short upright leaves and 3-5 dark lavender flowers on a stem. This is found on the western slopes of the Andes from southern Colombia into northern Peru and Ecuador at elevations of 3000 to 6000 feet above sea level.
Lowland type: up to two feet tall with 12-21 flowers on a spike, collected at sea level in Ecuador. Color intensity is pale to medium lavender flowers with none of the intense dark purple of the upland type,
Notable varieties:
Cattleya maxima has a lovely fragrance, and all the color forms of the large-flowered Cattleya species. Lowland type: there are albas, semialbas, lovely pale pinkish-lavender forms particularly in the tall-pseudobulb. Upland type: there are intense dark purple of the short-pseudobulb. There are also some attractive coerulea clones.
C. labiata has a mild and pleasant fragrance and thin, delicate substance like the best large-flowered Cattleya species and it is a very feminine flower. There is a wide range of color forms from pale lavender through rich, dark purple, and there are beautiful albas, semialbas, and coeruleas. It is as bright an addition to the fall landscape as the brilliantly colored leaves on the autumn trees.
C. labiata f. alba ‘Harefield Hall’ – from E. Ashworth’s old clone
C. labiata f. alba ‘Alba Plena’ – from John Lager, trace yellow in the throat
C. labiata f. alba FCC/RHS (1892) – exhibited by W. Wells
Unifoliate Cattleyas 
