Cattleya dowiana Bateman & Rchb.f 1886 SUBGENUS Cattleya SECTION Xantheae Withner 1988
Photos by © Daniel Jimenez
Photo by Franco Pupulin
Photo courtesy of Daniel Jimenez
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Common Name Dow's Cattleya [American Ship Captain 1800's]
Flower Size 6" [15 cm]
This species is found in Costa Rica and Panama on tree crowns on the Caribbean coast from elevations of 250 to 1200 meters as a medium sized, hot to cool growing epiphytic orchid with clavate, 3 1/4" to 8" [8 to 20 cm] tall pseudobulbs with distinct ribs when too dry, partially concealed in young with basal sheaths that paper and shred with age and a single, fleshy, oblong-elliptic, light green, conduplicate, apical leaf that blooms in the late summer and fall on a terminal, 5" [12.5 cm] long, few to several [5 to 6], flowered inflorescence arising on a mature pseudobulb with short lived, fragrant lemon, soap, spice and vanilla scented, very showy flowers.
Cattleya aurea [often cited as a variety of C dowiana] occurs in Colombia and has larger flowers with more intense coloration. I consider it a seprate species so please go to its alphabetical listing within the encyclopedia to see its information
Synonyms Cattleya dowiana f. carmoniana Pupulin 2015; Cattleya dowiana f. rosita (Pfau) Pupulin 2015; Cattleya dowiana var. rosita Pfau 1895; Cattleya labiata var dowiana [Batem. & Rchb.f] Veitch 1887; Cattleya lawrenceana Warsc. 1883
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Lankester's Epidendra Website CR ;
* Gard. Chron. 1866: 922 Bateman & Rchb.f 1866
Man. Orchid. Pl. 2: 16 A H Kent 1887 as C labiata var dowiana;
New Rare Beautiful Orchids: 5 Pfau 1895 as Cattleya dowiana var. rosita
Die Orchideen Schlechter 1915 as C labiata var dowiana photo fide;
Atlas des Orchidees Cultivees Constantin 1920 as C labiata var dowiana drawing fide;
Repert. Sp. Nov. Regni. Veg. Beih. 19: 47. Costa Rica Schlechter 1923;
Repert. Sp. Nov. Regni. Veg. Beih. 19: 133. Costa Rica Schlechter 1923;
Orchids of Malaya Holttum 1957 as C labiata var dowiana;
AOS Bulletin Vol 27 No 9 1958 drawing ok;
AOS Bulletin Vol 29 No 2 1960;
AOS Bulletin Vol 30 No 5 1961 photo fide;
AOS Orchid Culture 1963 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 32 No 10 1963;
Encyclopedia of Cultivated Orchids Hawkes 1965 as C labiata var dowiana;
Orchid Digest Vol 34 #4 1970 photo fide;
Die Orchideen 3 Auflage Bd 1 Sonderabdruck aus Schlechter Lieferung 10 576 - 632 Brieger, Maatsch and Senghas 1977 photo fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 42 No 2 1978 photo fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 42 No 6 1978 photo fide;
Orquideologia Vol 13 No 3 1979 photo;
Orquídea (Mexico City). 7(4): 1980 drawing fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 49 No 7 1980 drawing fide;
Orquideologia Vol 15 #1 Luer & Escobar 1981;
Growing Orchids Vol 2 Rentoul 1982;
Manual of Cultivated Orchids Bechtel, Cribb and Laurent 1982;
An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Orchids Pridgeon 1982;
Orchid Digest Vol 47 No 5 1983 as C dowiana var rosita photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 55 No 3 1986 photo fide;
The Catttleya and Their Relatives Withner Vol 1 1988 photo fide;
Native Colombian Orchid Vol 1 COS 1990 photo fide;
Icones Planetarum Tropicarum Plate 1305, 1305a Atwood 1989, 1992 drawing fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 56 No 4 1992 photo fide;
Field Guide to the Orchids of Costa Rica and Panama Dressler 1993;
Manual of Orchids Stewart 1995;
AOS Bulletin Vol 66 No 3 1997 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 66 No 7 1997 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 66 No 10 1997 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 67 No 7 1998 photo fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 64 #2 2000 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 71 # 4 2002 drawing fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 72 No 1 2003 photo fide;
Manual De Plantas de Costa Rica Volumen 3 Hammel, Grayum, Herrera and Zamora 2003 drawing/photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 73 No 12 2004 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 74 No 12 2005 photo fide;
Vanishing Beauty, Native Costa Rican Orchids Vol 1 Pupulin 2005 drawing good/photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 75 No 3 2006 drawing fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 75 No 9 2006 photo fide;
Orquideas de la Serrania del Baudo Misas Urreta 2006 drawing /photo fide;
Libro Rojo de Plantas De Colombia Vol 6 Primera Parte Saenz 2007 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 77 no 10 2008 photo fide;
Orquideologia Vol 25 #2 2008 photo fide;
Orquideología Vol 26 #2 2009 photo fide;
Orchids of Costa Rica Vol 1 Morales 2009 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 79 #12 2010 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 83 #1 2014 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 83 #1 2014 as C dowiana var rosite photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 83 #4 2014 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 83 #6 2014 photo fide;
Orchids of Tropical America an introduction and guide Meisel 2014 photo fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 79 #4 2015 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 84 #1 Pupulin 2015 as Cattleya dowiana f. carmoniana photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 84 #1 Pupulin 2015 as Cattleya dowiana f. rosita photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 84 #5 2015 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 84 #6 2015 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 84 #8 2015 photo fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 80 #2 2016;
AOS Bulletin Vol 85 #5 2016 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 85 #7 2016 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 85 #9 2016 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 86 #2 2017 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 86 # 7 2017 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 86 #9 2017 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 88 #8 2019 drawing fide; Materials to the Orchid Flora of Colombia Vol IV: 479 Szlatchetko & Kolanowska 2023 drawing/photo fide
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