Cattleya percivaliana [Rchb.f] O'Brien 1883 SUBGENUS Cattleya SECTION Cattleya Lindley Photo courtesy of Jay Pfahl

Another Color Form Photo courtesy of Patricia Harding

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Common Name Percival's Cattleya or Christmas Cattleya [English Orchid Enthusiast 1800's]

Flower Size Max of 5" [12.5 cm]

This is a large sized, warm to cool growing, largely lithophytic, but sometimes epiphytic species that is endemic to Venezuela [Listed as from Colombia], found at altitudes of 1300 to 2000 meters in full sun near rivers, with clavate, broadest in the middle, compressed ,green pseudobulbs carrying a single apical, narrowly oblong-elliptic, rigid, suberect, obtuse leaf and blooms in the summer through the winter on a terminal, to 10" [ to 25 cm] long, few flowered, short lived, racemose inflorescence with a large, basal, green sheath that carries 2 to 4, musty, fragrant flowers.

Synonyms *Cattleya labiata var percivaliana Rchb.f 1882

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; AOS Bulletin Vol 29 No 2 1960; Venezuelan Orchids Vol 2 Dunsterville & Garay 1961; Flora de Venezuela Foldats Volumen XV Part 3 1970 as C labiata var percivaliana; AOS Bulletin Vol 66 No 9 1997 photo; Botanica's Orchids Laurel Glen 2002; The Catttleya and their Relatives Withner Vol 1 1988; Encyclopedia of Cultivated Orchids Hawkes 1987 as C labiata var percivilliana; Manual of Orchids Stewart 1995; Manual of Cultivated Orchids Bechtel; Cribb & Laurent 1982; Orchids of Malaya Holttum 1957; Growing Orchids Vol 2 Rentoul 1982; An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Orchids Pridgeon 1982; Orchids of Venezuela Dunsterville 1987; Orchids of Venezuela; An Illustrated Field Guide Dunsterville & Garay 1979; AOS Bulletin Vol 66 No 3 1997 photo; AOS Bulletin Vol 68 No 12 1999 photo; AOS Bulletin Vol 72 No 1 2003 photo; Australian Orchid Review Vol 69 No 4 2004 photo; AOS Bulletin Vol 74 No 10 2005 photo; AOS Bulletin Vol 75 No 9 2006 photo; AOS Bulletin Vol 76 No 3 2007 photo; Orchid Digest Vol 77 No 1 2008 photo

Cattleya percivaliana (Rchb. f.) O'Brien 1883 var. alba SUBGENUS Cattleya SECTION Cattleya Lindley Photo courtesy of David Morris and Clackamas Orchids

Cattleya percivaliana (Rchb. f.) O'Brien 1883 var coerulea SUBGENUS Cattleya SECTION Cattleya Lindley Photo courtesy of David Jubineau and His Bulbophyllum Pages Copyright ©

to A color variety of the previous species.

References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; AOS Bulletin Vol 39 No 5 1970;