New cattleya...

[kenc82]

I have become an Orchid collector. They are such Wonderful Plants. I have 3 Phal plants that i am in love with. This weekend I went to a Local Walmart and decided to go over to the gardening section. The Phal that walmart had were not in good condition and very unhealthy looking. But I did notice they had Lavender Cattleya Seedlings for like $5.00 each. Two of which were really Healthy looking so I figured what the heck and bought them. When I got home I checked the plants completly. I have not tryed my hand at any other Orchid other than Phalaenopsis. The Leaves on the Cattleya are very fleshy, sturdy and Green and the roots are in very good condition. I have been reading on them and am confused?? I know Phal cannot take Direct sunlight. For Cattleya I am reading they can take full sun. Does this mean Direct Sunlight?? What are good tips to care for my new seedlings to grow them into healthy mature plant?? and how long before they reach blooming maturity??

[Ellen]

Kenny,

Cattleyas are actually some of the easiest orchids to grow. They can take full sun in the early morning and late afternoon, but full California sun in the middle of the day could cause sunburn. A mild sunburn shows up as a dry light colored patch on the leaf, a bad one as a black patch. In my experience, the occasional sunburn isn't fatal, but your plant will have an ugly leaf for a long time, and its growth will be set back. Prolonged exposure to way too much sun would eventually kill the plant, but I would think most growers would notice symptoms and move the plant before that happens. In my south-facing solarium what I do is put up a sort of awning over the shelves where my orchids grow so that they get direct sun in the AM until about 10:00 and in the PM after about 3:00. I use lacy fabric for shade because it mimics the light-shade patterns of leaves overhead - it looks funky, but if the plants like it, who cares? If you're growing outside, just put the plants under a mid-day shade source like a tree or shrub.

Good luck with your Cattleyas!

[victor]

always water your cat's early in the morning and in the evening dont water them in the middle of a hot day as it will assisit in burning the leaves.cat's need water and moisture to suvive.
victor

[jerrymeola]

All the advice so far has been good.

To just round out the advice, I want to mention that cattleyas when young do not need much light to grow. The light level is necessary to get the plant to flower. A $5 seedling from WalMart is probably 2-3 years away from blooming. Unfortunately a store like WalMart does not tell you this before you buy it. They probably do not even know.

I have thousands of young cattleyas in much lower than recommended light levels. As I said it is not necessary to grow and they are too young to flower. Lower light levels put less stress on a new plant and do not evaporate the water in the pot as fast. There is nothing wrong with putting it blooming light levels just a little different care.

The light level for blooming is 3500 foot candles. California summer sun at noon should be around 10,000 foot candles. This is why Kenny's lighing suggestions work well for many people in open light. Here in SW Florida many people grow cattleys in screen cages. I want to point out that screening blocks 70% of the light. I have never been able to get a reading higher than 4000 in my screen cage even when the light outside the cage was 11,000.

Unlike your phals these plants will not flower indoors without extra effort to maintain light levels. Growing outside they dry out faster and need to be watered more often. they are gorgeous and usually have a very pleasent fragrance. They are worth the wait.

[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

I have a north west window, so only get late afternoon light, and use a filmy curtain from Walmart. The important thing to note is that it is the temperature that the leaf gets to that does the damage, not some character of the sunlight. When the light is hitting the leaves, you can feel them to judge if you have a problem. If the leaves are luke warm, or a little more, to the touch, they are OK. If the leaves are hot to the touch, they are getting too much light and you probably should take the plant to the sink and run water over the leaves to cool them off. Higher light levels can be tolerated during cool weather, and lower light levels will be needed if your room temp goes very high during warm weather. A fan can make a difference too. I have a fan in the above memtioned window that is pluged into a thermostat, as we have no cooling in the house as yet. Cynthia, Prescott, AZ

[kenc82]

Thank you all so much for your feedback it is greatly appreciated.

[atcrosby]

Originally Posted by jerrymeola

The light level for blooming is 3500 foot candles. ...

Unlike your phals these plants will not flower indoors without extra effort to maintain light levels.

Jerry, I just joined this forum and am in awe of the information provided. I too have bought three cattleya seedlings from a department store (Lowes). I immediately repotted them in a similar size container in new medium. I have had them now for three weeks and they seem to be growing well in that the leaves are now spreading out and some new growth is occuring at the base.

I know I have 5-7 years to wait but they will be indoor plants. Is the extra work you're referencing indicative of maintaining the proper lighting levels indoors? I have purchased a light meter but it has not arrived so I will not be able to determine exactly what the levels are in the room.

I have also received gifts a Oncidium, a Phalaenopsis and a Colmanara orchid. Will the light level requirements all be the same for these orchid variaties?

[jerrymeola]

atcrosby

The extra work I refered to is indeed the effort to maintain proper light levels.

You will not have to wait 5-7 years in that a cattleya 3-4 inches high is already 3-4 years old. Also many of the newer hybrids bloom smaller and younger than wild species orchids.

Cattleyas take 3500 foot candles of light, Colmanara and oncidiums 2500 and Phalaenopsis 1500, which is normal room light a few feet from a window. Now these are the light levels for initiating blooms. Young plants can grow well in lower light levels.

Since you purchased a light meter you can use it to find appropriate places for each type of orchid. It will minimize the trial and error approach.

For those who do not have a meter you can use a camera
Measuring light levels with an SLR camera

Your orchids sound in good shape. Big stores have a tendency to neglect plants and destroy them. Failure to water young plants retards their growth. Since you see new growth your plants are doing fine.

[greg_s]

Kenny,

If your light meter is like mine...just remember the conversion of Lux to Footcandles: 1 footcandles = 10.76391 lux

Greg

[davetheorchidaddict]

Kenny C, there is some good information here that I wish I had years ago. About seedlings I believe many people get discouraged when they buy them because of the length of time it takes them to bloom and the different growing conditions. We have had several collections donated to our society because the collector gave up and all they had were seedlings that they had bought from catalogs with beautiful pictures but no warning that it would take a few years to reach that development.