| Plant Habit: | Herb/Forb |
| Life cycle: | Perennial |
| Sun Requirements: | Full Sun to Partial Shade Partial or Dappled Shade |
| Flowers: | Showy |
| Suitable Locations: | Houseplant |
| Resistances: | Humidity tolerant |
| Containers: | Needs excellent drainage in pots |
| Miscellaneous: | Epiphytic |
BigBill said:When it comes to Cattleya maxima, they are all judged as Cattleya maxima! We don't distinguish between the two.
However it is generally said that the upland plants generally produce 3-5 flowers and they tend to be of darker color and better form. Flowers of lowland plants number between 12-15, are more floppy and tend to be from white to pink with darker veins in the lip.
In looking over recent awards, we find a clone, 'Chadwick's Dark'. It had five flowers on a single inflorescence. I think we could assume that it was an upland clone. It received an AM of 86 points!! That was in February of 2018.
If I look at an award from 2013 to 'Peruvian Beauty', I would assume that it was a lowland clone. It got an 82 point AM with 36 flowers and one bud on two inflorescences! I see the color to be a medium pink/lavender. The color of 'Chadwick's Dark' was described as being pink, overlain with darker pink! No where in the records of awards could I find any reference to lowland form or upland form.
Any judge worth his weight in salt better be familiar with the differences or be good enough to discover them while doing research. No maxima should ever be screened for low flower count, say 4 versus 12 because it could be the upland form where the flower count would be proper.
BigBill said:.. I [found] in my research that the upland bulbs of maxima tend to be shorter. However, the difference listed for bulb girth and length was not terribly different. And then when you consider how much culture can impact the vegetative parameters, I would be reluctant to make that call. PLUS keep in mind that in today's world of Cattleyas, there is a great deal of tetraploidy. Tetraploids would tend to have shorter and thicker bulbs with thicker, rounder leaves.
