Cattleya aclandiae
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Cattleya aclandiae | |
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Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Order: | Asparagales |
| Family: | Orchidaceae |
| Subfamily: | Epidendroideae |
| Genus: | Cattleya |
| Subgenus: | Cattleya subg. Intermediae |
| Species: | C. aclandiae |
| Binomial name | |
| Cattleya aclandiae | |
| Synonyms | |
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Cattleya aclandiae, or Lady Ackland's cattleya, is a species of orchid from the genus Cattleya, named in honor of Lady Lydia Elizabeth Ackland, wife of Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 10th Baronet who was the first European to grow the plant successfully. The illustration of the plant which accompanied its first description was based on a drawing by Lady Ackland. The genus was named in honour of William Cattley, a prominent British merchant and horticulturist.
Cattleya aclandiae is found growing on tree limbs and trunks in the Brazilian state of Bahia. It has a very small natural range and is found growing in the wind southwest of Salvador on elevated plateaus that border the drainage of the Paraguaçu River. Its native habitat is seasonally dry forests between 100 and 400 meters in elevation near permanent bodies of water.
Description
Cattleya aclandiae is compact and only grows 3–5 in (7.6–12.7 cm) tall. The upright, short, cylindrical pseudobulbs have two fleshy leaves at the apex. Sometimes, purple blotches are found on the leaves when the plants are exposed to intense sunlight. Each growth produces between one and three 2.5 to 4 inches (6.4 to 10.2 centimetres) and the flowers are large for the size of the plant. Flowers are substantial, waxy, and long-lived. Flower color is white or near-white with purple blotches and spots. The lip has a dark purple blotch and the anther cap is yellow. Flowers bloom in the spring and summer on new growths.
