Dendrobium bigibbum aka Cooktown Orchid

Dendrobium bigibbum, also known as the Cooktown orchid or mauve butterfly orchid, is a medium to large-sized evergreen tropical orchid. It is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid with cylindrical pseudobulbs that can range from 200 to 1,200 mm in length and 15 to 20 mm in width. The pseudobulbs have green or purplish coloring, often with purplish edges. Each pseudobulb carries three to five egg-shaped leaves that are approximately 100 to 150 mm long and 30 to 35 mm wide. The orchid has upright, cane-like stems with three to 12 dark green lance-shaped leaves on the upper half of each stem. The leaves are around 8 to 15 cm long. From the upper nodes and tip of mature leafy or leafless canes, arching flowering stems up to 30 cm long emerge. These stems bear up to 20 bright pinkish-purple flowers that are 4 to 7 cm in size and resemble those of the popular Moth Orchid. The flowers of Dendrobium bigibbum are lilac-purple, rarely bluish or pinkish in color. They are resupinate, ranging from 20 to 30 mm in length and 30 to 70 mm in width, depending on the variety. The sepals are oblong to egg-shaped, measuring 20 to 30 mm in length and 9 to 11 mm in width. The dorsal sepal is upright or turned back, while the lateral sepals spread widely apart. The petals are broadly egg-shaped, approximately 25 to 30 mm long and wide. The labellum, measuring 20 to 26 mm in length and 20 to 28 mm in width, has three lobes. The side lobes are upright, and the middle lobe features four or five ridges along its midline, with a hairy patch in the center. Flowering for Dendrobium bigibbum occurs from February to July. This orchid species is native to tropical North Queensland, Australia, and New Guinea. While there are four varieties of Dendrobium bigibbum, each previously considered a separate species, they all share similar characteristics and growth habits.