This column has a pair of falciform (sickle-shaped) ears on each side of the front and contains twelve (sometimes eight) pollinia.

Most Brassavola orchids are very fragrant, attracting pollinators with their citrusy smell.

In 1698 Brassavola nodosa was the first tropical orchid to be brought from the Caribbean island Curaçao to Holland.

This section, erected by Rolfe in 1902, is characterized by narrowly constricted labellum bases.

The sectional type is B. acaulis Brassavola is in the same alliance as the genera Cattleya and Laelia.