Appearance
Epiphytic herb with club-shaped pseudobulbs, up to 39 cm. or taller with one leaf at the top (total height of pseudobulb and leaf about 61 cm). Leaf oblong or broadly oblong, rounded at apex, light green, up to 35 cm. long and up to 6 cm. wide, thick and fleshy. Inflorescence stem up to 30 cm long, with 3-6 (upland variety) or 12-15 (lowland variety) flowers. Flowers 12–15 cm wide, with lilac or pale rose sepals and petals, except the lip or labellum, which has dark purple veins and a yellow area in the middle. Dorsal sepal narrowly elliptic; lateral sepals elliptic lanceolate; petals elliptic with wavy margin; lip folded forming a tube, with the front margin curly and wavy. Column slender and arched.
Distribution
Cattleya maxima occurs as an epiphyte on trees in dry forests from 100 to 1800 m of elevation, from Venezuela to northern Peru. It has been reported in Ecuador.Habitat
The upland variety can be found growing on rocky slopes.References:
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