About Cattleya trianae Linden & Rchb.f.
Cattleya trianae Linden & Rchb.f., also called Flor de Mayo ("May flower") or "Christmas orchid", is a flowering plant species belonging to the orchid family Orchidaceae. It grows as an epiphytic orchid with succulent leaves, and it is endemic to Colombia. It was nominated as Colombia's national flower in November 1936. That same year, the National Academy of History of Argentina invited Latin American countries to take part in an exhibition that would feature each country's representative national flower. The Colombian government assigned botanist Emilio Robledo the task of selecting the most representative flowering plant for the country. Two main reasons led to the selection of Cattleya trianae: its lip has yellow, blue, and red coloration matching the colors of the Colombian flag, and the species was named in honor of 19th century Colombian botanist José Jerónimo Triana. This species grows in cloud forests at elevations between 1500 and 2000 meters above sea level. It is classified as an endangered species, threatened by habitat destruction. The diploid chromosome number of C. trianae has been found to be 2n = 40, and the haploid chromosome number has been determined to be n = 20.
