| Being a commercial grower I probably would have given you the same advice as the person from whom you bought it.
To me all Cattleya die in the center. They are rhizomes and grow in one direction only. Your two directions could also indicate two plants in the pot, which is why it may fall in half when re-potting.
I limit the number of plants I put two to a pot. Too often one dominates and kills off the other.
I just re potted 500 Cattleya and cut off 90 % of the roots. Some are flowering already in 6 weeks (and it is winter) and I expect most to flower this summer. Old weak roots to not sustain good growth and while the plant may live it losses the robust growth that makes a specimen plant. A bad root can not do any good for a plant and a root 2-3 years old is almost dead to the plant. Only the new green tip roots are really valuable.
when I was a hobbyist I would up-pot plants one size larger to my regret. Now I often downsize to smaller pots while removing all the old growth.
I am not saying your should do this to your plant but want to show you a different philosophy.
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jerry  |