Laeliocattleya Canhamiana Coerulea “Azure Skys”
I began this journal for several reasons. I’ll get to them eventually. First I want to talk about Canhamiana. The full name is Laeliocattleya Canhamiana, abbreviated as Lc. Canhamiana. My favorite varieties are the Coerulea, and the clones, ‘Cobalt” and ‘Azure Sky’. The cross was originally made in 1885 by Sir Harry James Veitch (24 June 1840 – 6 July 1924) of the Royal Horticultural Society by crossing Laelia purpurata with Cattleya mossiae. Lc. Canhamiana is one of the most famous of all orchid crosses. It was the wedding orchid of the 40′s and 50′s and hundred of thousands were grown for the cut flower industry.
Laelia purpurata
Laelia purpurata is one of the finest of all cultivated orchids. It has large showy flowers, and has one of the widest ranges of color forms. I believe there more named clones of L. purpurata than any other Laelia or Cattleya species. Laelia purpurata produces large flowers, 6 to 8 inches (15-20 cm) across, and there are usually four or five flowers on a spike. The lavender color in the lip can be a brilliant royal purple often mixed with tones of red. Many semialba forms exist that often have striking dark purple lips and present a gorgeous contrast in color. Semialba forms also include flowers with pink to reddish lips, and lips that are dark slate-blue. Although there are a number of pale lavender albescens forms, there are also a few beautiful true albas. Laelia purpurata is native to Santa Caterina in southern Brazil, and is the state flower of Santa Caterina. With its many color forms, L. purpurata is a collector’s dream.
Cattleya mossiae
Cattleya mossiae was discovered in 1836 and caused a sensation when it was introduced into the horticultural world in Europe. Cattleya mossiae has large, showy flowers with four or five flowers per spike and multiple leads. A single plant in a 10-inch pot can produce 20 or more flowers. Between 1865 and 1913, the Royal Horticultural Society gave its coveted awards, including 37 Awards of Merit and 16 First Class Certificates, 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.
Loved in its native Venezuela, C. mossiae is the country’s national flower. This is impressive since Venezuela claims eight Cattleya species including the unifoliates, Cattleya leuddemanniana, Cattleya percivaliana, Cattleya gaskelliana and Cattleya jenmanii, and speaks loudly for the people’s love of C. mossiae.
William Hooker described the species best. He declaired Cattleya mossiae as simply “the most magnificent of all orchideous plants.” I can find no reason to argue with him.
Lc. Canahmiana Coerulea ‘Cobalt’
Lc. Canhamiana inherits the flower shape of its purpurata parent and displays the magnificent mossiae lip. The upper sepal resembles that of purpurata while the two lower sepals are that of mossiae. The petals are all purpurata and it’s very easy to mistake Lc. Canhamiana for one of the many hundreds of L. purpurata clones. Canhamiana grows “like a weed” with good gulture and requires no more care than any cattleya. Lc. Canhamiana has captivated me from the first time I saw it. Canhamiana is a simple, beautiful and elegant flower. I love it.
