Cattleya maxima Cattleya maxima Cattleya maxima is a species of orchid in subfamily Epidendroideae found from Venezuela to Peru. 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,
Cattleya rex rose and red. Sepals narrowly elliptic; petals ovate, elliptic or rhomboid; lip folded to form a tube, with very wavy front margin. Pollinia 4, with curved appendages. James O'Brien described the species for the first time in 1890 from a live flowering plant collected in the area of Moyobamba, San Martín by Mr. Bungeroth and cultivated at L'Horticulture International, Brussels, by Mr. L. Linden. That was the first known flowering plant outside the native habitat of "C. rex". "C. rex" is known from a few localities in the regions of San Martin and Puno in Peru and the department of