orchids and orchidology in central america. 500 ... - lankesteriana.org

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In Las Cóncavas, during the next 33 years and
while he continued sending plants to Ames, Lankester
created the orchid garden that would become the
Mecca of all botanists who passed through Costa
Rica, not only because of the plants, but also for
don Carlos’ vast knowledge of the country and its
nature (Fig. 50D). “Generous to a fault, hospitable to
all, he was counselor to all scientists who came to
Costa Rica. His interests were catholic - butterflies,
birds, but most especially epiphytic plants, orchids,
bromeliads and aroids” (Williams, 1972: 207). “A
naturalist in the best and widest sense of that word”
(Standley, 1925: 274). His business affairs suffered
many ups and downs, and he often thought about
returning to England. “It is just possible I may
complete sale of this place during the coming week;
if so Costa Rica will soon see me no more” (Letter
to Ames, December 17, 1925). But he continued
and never abandoned the country. In July of 1925,
Lankester was elected as an honorary member of the
American Orchid Society.
After 1932, the correspondence between Ames
and Lankester became less frequent. Ames was
approaching 60 years of age and Lankester already
passed 50. The initial passion gives way to a more
serene and calm relationship. But their friendship
continued until the death of the great American
orchidologist in 1950.In 1956, when Lankester
could not manage his farm because of his age, he
sold “Las Cóncavas”. His wife had died, his children
were far away, and don Carlos had no success in
finding someone to care for his garden. He then
moved his garden to a nearby property known as
“Silvestre”. It was on this property where, years later,
the Lankester Botanical Garden of the University
of Costa Rica was established. However, despite
of his age, he continued collecting. One of his last
specimens has the number 1761, a plant of Warrea
costaricensis Schltr., collected in February of 1960,
when Lankester was already 81 years old. In the last
years of his life Lankester lived in Moravia, where
he continued cultivating orchids to the last day. It is
said that shortly before passing away he confessed to
his daughter Dorothy: “I am only sorry that, with all
the opportunities I had, I never made enough money”
(R. Lankester, pers. comm., 2004). In the words of
Rafael Lucas Rodríguez, one of his close friends, “...
LANKESTERIANA
LANKESTERIANA 9(1—2), August 2009. © Universidad de Costa Rica, 2009.
his friends have at least the consolation that he had no
long agony, and that his last days were rather happy,
with a celebration of his 90 th birthday in June and
the Garden Club awarding him a gold medal only last
week” (In a letter to Robert Dressler, July 10, 1969.
Except for a few articles, Lankester left a very
limited amount of publications. He prepared a
manual about the orchids of Costa Rica, that was
approved for publication by the American Orchid
Society in 1968, a year before his death, but the
project was never completed (Lankester, 1944). The
manuscript, with the title Costa Rican Orchids, is
now part of the library of the Lankester Botanical
Garden, awaiting to be published together with a
biography of the great naturalist. Lankester’s only
son, John Maurice Hawker Lankester (1913—),
became also interested in orchids and in 1952
collected a new species, Epidendrum puteum Standl.
& L.O. Williams, that flowered at Las Cóncavas
(John M.H. Lankester, 1606).
Alfredo Sancho (1876-1929) was Lankester’s
good friend and companion on many collecting trips.
Brother of the writer Mario Sancho and of Francisco
and Carlos Sancho, who owned farms in Peralta and
La Estrella (to the East and South of Cartago), he
introduced Lankester to the orchidaceous flora of the
regions where his brothers worked. Lankester himself
owned for a short period of time a farm in Peralta, a
project he abandoned for economic reasons. During
their collecting trips, Lankester and Sancho collected
a great number of new species, that were named in
honor of Sancho and his favorite collecting sites:
Epidendrum sanchoi Ames, Lepanthes sanchoi Ames,
Pleurothallis sanchoi Ames, Stelis sanchoi Ames,
Encyclia peraltensis (Ames) Dressler, Pleurothallis
peraltensis Ames, Chondrorhyncha estrellensis
Ames, Epidendrum estrellense Ames, and Lepanthes
estrellensis Ames. In a letter to Ames, Lankester
shows the great affection he felt for the Sanchos:
“I hope you may have time to meet Mario Sancho
[at that time Consul of Costa Rica in Chicago]. His
brother Alfredo, to whom you dedicated a Lepanthes
and a Pleurothallis, has at various times helped on the
good cause, and we had the pleasure of seeing them
both here last night... they are worthy representatives
of the best of the old Cartago gente” (Letter to Ames,
July 30, 1924).