204 THE ORCHID REVIEW. [JuLy, 1922. 
CATTLEYA MAXIMA. 
HIS species appears to have been first discovered by Ruiz and Pavon, 
two Spanish botanists, who had been sent out to Peru in 1777 by the 
‘Spanish Government to investigate the Cinchona forests of that country, 
-and who gathered it on the Andes, near Guayaquil. Ruiz and Pavon’'s 
herbarium specimen was acquired by A. B. Lambert, from which this 
Cattleya was partially described by Lindley in 1831. Eleven years later it 
was gathered by Hartweg, and sent to the Horticultural Society of London, 
in whose garden at Chiswick it flowered in 1844. Lindley figured it in the 
Botanical Register for 1846, and remarked: ‘We may be excused for 
_doubting how far this beautiful plant can lay claim to the rank of a species, 
for it evidently approaches both C. Mossiz and C. labiata in many im- 
portant particulars. If, however, we attach any value to differences of 
-colour, then, indeed, there remains no difficulty in separating this plant, for 
it is remarkable for the dark crimson veins, richly traced upon its pallid 
lip, and for a beautiful net-work of purple streaks, which is drawn all over 
their surface.” 
There are two distinct forms: the original C. maxima, gathered by 
Ruiz and Pavon, and Hartweg, has plump, short, crowded stems, with stiff 
upright leaves, and deep-coloured flowers; the other has longer and more 
slender stems, with thinner leaves and pale flowers. The typical form, 
-with short pseudobulbs, was at one time known as Backhouse’s variety, 
_and a fine example is figured in the Orchid Album, t. 193, as C. maxima 
Backhousei. A very much darker variety is figured in a subsequent volume 
of the same work (t. 404) as C. maxima Marchettiana. This plant is 
described as compact growing, with club-shaped bulbs some twelve inches 
high, bearing a single leaf about five inches long and nearly two inches 
wide. But the colour of the flower is so very distinct as to render it quite 
a freak example, and of somewhat similar character to that seen in Peeter’s 
-variety of C. labiata. 
A First-class Certificate was awarded to C. maxima when exhibited by 
Messrs. Veitch at the Royal Horticultural Society, November 5th, 1867, 
and a similar award to the variety peruviana shown by Messrs. Sanders, 
May 12th, 1885. C. maxima alba was exhibited by Mr. Hamar Bass at the 
meeting of the above Society, held November roth, 1896, when it also 
-obtained a First-class Certificate. The whole flower was pure white, 
with the exception of a broad light yellow line along the disc, the latter 
being characteristic of the species. This beautiful variety appears to have 
-been the first recorded true albino of C. maxima. In 1881 Messrs. Veitch 
flowered, and named as alba, a variety with pure-white flowers, excepting 
-some rose-purple veins on the front of the lip; hence it was not a true 
