60 A B LANKESTERIANA Figure 23. A — The Plant Hunter. Draw<strong>in</strong>g by Paul Weber, 1941, from Hamer, 1974 (courtesy of Hedwig Hamer). B — Map of Nicaragua by Orl<strong>and</strong>o Roberts. In Roberts, 1965. LANKESTERIANA 9(1—2), August 2009. © Universidad de Costa Rica, 2009.
ossenbaCh — Orchids <strong>and</strong> <strong>orchidology</strong> <strong>in</strong> Central America -1893) 17 , work<strong>in</strong>g for Low, collected <strong>in</strong> Mexico between 1835 <strong>and</strong> 1840, especially <strong>in</strong> the region of Veracruz, discover<strong>in</strong>g an important number of new species of Orchidaceae: Laelia barkeriana Knowles & Westc. (‘Plant cultivated by G. Barker, sent to him by J. Henchman from the vic<strong>in</strong>ity of Jalapa’), Oncidium luridum var. henchmannii Knowles & Westc. (Henchmann s.n.), Maxillaria henchmannii Hook. (Henchmann s.n.), Maxillaria cucullata L<strong>in</strong>dl. (‘a native of Equ<strong>in</strong>octial America, whence it is said to have been brought by Mr. Henchman’) (Fig. 24C), Humboldtia octomerioides (L<strong>in</strong>dl.) Kuntze (Henchmann s.n.), <strong>and</strong> Stanhopea tigr<strong>in</strong>a Bateman ex L<strong>in</strong>dl. (‘Henchman s.n., 1835, Habitat <strong>in</strong> Mexico, propè urbem Xalapam’). He also worked for Ge<strong>org</strong>e Barker <strong>and</strong> had been before <strong>in</strong> Venezuela, from where we know of at least one collection, Chysis aurea L<strong>in</strong>dl. (‘<strong>in</strong> the valley of Cumanacoa, <strong>in</strong> Venezuela, Mr. Henchman s.n.’). Much later, <strong>in</strong> 1864, Capta<strong>in</strong> John M. Dow mentions a collector by the name of Macgee, who collected <strong>orchids</strong> for Low <strong>in</strong> Guatemala, but we have no other <strong>in</strong>formation about him (Letter from Dow to Sk<strong>in</strong>ner, Feb. 20, 1864). The genus Barkeria was first described by Knowles <strong>and</strong> Westcott <strong>in</strong> 1838 <strong>and</strong> named <strong>in</strong> honour of Ge<strong>org</strong>e Barker (1776-1845) of Spr<strong>in</strong>gfield, Engl<strong>and</strong>, who had imported a plant from Mexico. Barker was a pioneer <strong>in</strong> import<strong>in</strong>g <strong>orchids</strong>, ma<strong>in</strong>ly from Mexico, among which many new species were discovered. A few of them are: Trichopilia tortilis L<strong>in</strong>dl. (G. Barker s.n., Mexico), Pleurothallis (=Restrepiella) ophiocephala L<strong>in</strong>dl. (Mexico, Loddiges & Barker s.n.), Odontoglossum cordatum L<strong>in</strong>dl. (‘Ge<strong>org</strong>e Barker s.n., flowered <strong>in</strong> cultivation, orig<strong>in</strong>ally from Mexico’), Microstylis excavata L<strong>in</strong>dl. (Mexico, Mr. Barker s.n.), <strong>and</strong> Laelia furfuracea L<strong>in</strong>dl. (Karw<strong>in</strong>ski, Oaxaca). Barker is undoubtedly an important figure <strong>in</strong> the <strong>in</strong>troduction of <strong>orchids</strong> from our region to Europe, <strong>in</strong> the early years after the <strong>in</strong>dependence of the Central American countries from Spa<strong>in</strong>. “As a botanist, Mr. Barker was much dist<strong>in</strong>guished. He bestowed considerable attention on the cultivation of orchidaceous plants, of which he had a collection that is believed to have been almost unique, <strong>and</strong> certa<strong>in</strong>ly was unsurpassed <strong>in</strong> value by that of any private horticulturist <strong>in</strong> Europe” (Urban, 1846: 324-325). John Ross (?—?), who collected <strong>orchids</strong> between 1837-1840 <strong>in</strong> Mexico, sent many plants to Barker, among them several species of Odontoglossum for which Schlechter, <strong>in</strong> 1916, proposed the name of Rossioglossum <strong>in</strong> his honor (Schlechter, 1916: 153). The name was formally published as a new genus by Garay <strong>and</strong> Kennedy <strong>in</strong> 1976. Another species named for him was Odontoglossum rossii L<strong>in</strong>dl., today Rhynchostele rossii (L<strong>in</strong>dl.) Soto Arenas y Salazar (‘A charm<strong>in</strong>g plant, sent to Mr. Barker from Mexico by his collector Mr. Ross, after whom it is named’). “Ross started <strong>in</strong> 1837, but his collection did not reach Engl<strong>and</strong> till the follow<strong>in</strong>g year. It <strong>in</strong>cluded the beautiful Odontoglossum rossii <strong>and</strong> Peristeria (Ac<strong>in</strong>eta) barkeri, the latter be<strong>in</strong>g discovered <strong>in</strong> a dark rav<strong>in</strong>e <strong>in</strong> the neighbourhood of Xalapa” (Anonymous, 1931: 364). Other collections by Ross <strong>in</strong>clude Peristeria barkeri Bateman (Ross s.n., Jalapa), Gale<strong>and</strong>ra baueri L<strong>in</strong>dl. (‘Ross s.n., Mexico’), Laelia majalis L<strong>in</strong>dl. (‘Habitat <strong>in</strong> Mexico - Schiede, Hartweg, Ross’), Epidendrum aloifolium L. <strong>and</strong> Chysis laevis L<strong>in</strong>dl. (‘Habitat <strong>in</strong> Mexico - Ross’). The British naval expeditions to the coasts of Central America, the most important be<strong>in</strong>g those of H.M. S. Conway (1822), H.M.S. Blossom (1827) <strong>and</strong> of H.M.S. Sulphur (1836), had undoubtedly also scientific purposes, but their ma<strong>in</strong> goal was the geographical exploration <strong>and</strong> the construction of reliable maps prepar<strong>in</strong>g for a future dom<strong>in</strong>ation of the region <strong>and</strong> the control of the canal routes. The decade which began <strong>in</strong> 1840 “is the epoch of maximum English power <strong>in</strong> Central America. Great Brita<strong>in</strong> would try to confront the grow<strong>in</strong>g power of the United States <strong>and</strong> both nations would choose the border region between Costa Rica <strong>and</strong> Nicaragua as the ground where they would test their forces...” (Obregón Quesada, 1993: 75). Great Brita<strong>in</strong>, who already had a stronghold <strong>in</strong> Belize, pretended <strong>in</strong> addition the control of the access to the San Juan river. “A new period of activity set <strong>in</strong>, <strong>and</strong> cont<strong>in</strong>ued almost unbroken for many years; but few of the numerous travelers had received a scientific tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g, hence the botanical results were by no means so satisfactory as they might have been. Indeed, the pr<strong>in</strong>cipal object of many of these travelers was the <strong>in</strong>troduction of liv<strong>in</strong>g plants <strong>in</strong>to European gardens” (Hemsley, 1887: 123). LANKESTERIANA 9(1—2), August 2009. © Universidad de Costa Rica, 2009. 61
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