Cattleya

[grandmapenguin]

I finally am getting a Cattleya to rebloom for me.

I do have a question though. I also had another Spike but it not only blasted but the whole part of the plant is dying. This is in the same pot with the enclosed photos. The leaves of this one section seem to be withering although the rest of the plant looks fine. Should I just leave it alone or should I be repotting and removing this section

The reddish hued one looks like a Spike to me. Is it or do you all think it is just more leaves. This is another Cattleya.
Terry

[Stelios]

great, i can't wait to see the blooms on this.
About the dying pb i would check if it is from the roots or from bacterial rot but yes, i would take it to the fireplace and repot the rest of the plant in fresh medium.

[rcb]

Originally Posted by grandmapenguin

The reddish hued one looks like a Spike to me. Is it or do you all think it is just more leaves. This is another Cattleya.
Terry

Are you referring to pic 3? If so, then no that is not a spike, it is a new p'bulb growing. Cattleys bloom from the base of the leaves, at the top of the p'bulb (with the exception of one species)

Congrats on the buds, and as for the one that is dying, is it turning mushy?

[Brooke]

Renee is correct, you have a new pbulb growing. You are seeing both leaves of a bifoliate catt.

Are you talking about the brownish/darkish coating wrapped around the pbulb in pic #1? Wet it with water and remove it. This is called sarong? and is typical of all catts to have this and is also the perfect hiding place for bugs. Hopefully when you remove it, you will find a shiny green pbulb.

Brooke

[Stitz]

I'm curious about the term 'sarong' used with orchids. I know what it's used to define. I never heard it 'til very recent years.

Is it a relatively new term for orchids? I'm quite familiar with that word from waay back so it's neither a recognition nor cognition problem. Must be all of the old-timey people and books....?

--Stitz--

[syndywindy]

I agree with the others. 3rd pic is definitely new growth which is always good. Does your catt have a name? As far as the part which you think is dying, are we able to see this in your pictures? I think I would be checking the rhizomes and roots in the area you are concerned about to see if there is any rot taking place. If so, then you need to cut away any affected area until you get healthy tissue.

[grandmapenguin]

rcb I checked the leaves and about five look like they are going to be history. They are one clump, very firm but withering, and color hue is changing. I hate to dsiturb it now with the one ready to bloom. Any more ideas

[rcb]

grandma - ok going to make a guess here, can't be sure without seeing the whole thing. But if you are getting a lot of withering leaves, and the p'bulbs are not mushy and they are from the oldest bulbs?? then I'm guessing the roots that grew from those p'bulbs are probably gone.

Is this the Catt that is in bud? If so, I'm supposing that the plant is pulling energy from the older bulbs to support the new growth and budding. Or another possibility is that you are not watering enough. I do let my Catts completely dry out in between waterings, but if it is growing and budding at the same time, combined with probably low humidity right now, it's going to use up the water more quickly.

so basically the plant is sacrificing the oldest bulbs to keep the new growth and buds. When you say the color is changing, if you mean turning more yellowish? then yes that is what is happening.

This is not the most ideal, but don't panic, it's not that bad either - or even unusual. Enjoy your flowers, then take a look at the roots. But if the plant starts seriously declining, then maybe interfere.

Stitz - I've only ever heard the word sarong used here on this board. I was always taught they were called sheaths - this may not be taxonomically correct either though.

[kmarch]

Originally Posted by grandmapenguin

The reddish hued one looks like a Spike to me. Is it or do you all think it is just more leaves. This is another Cattleya.

Someone may correct me if I am wrong but from what I have observed, bifoliate cattleyas pretty much all have sheaths in which the bud develops. So I'd look down inside the leaves as they unfurl to see if there is a sheath inside there. A lot of these cattleyas will flower after the growth has matured.

Originally Posted by Brooke

This is called sarong?

Originally Posted by Stitz

I'm curious about the term 'sarong' used with orchids. I know what it's used to define. I never heard it 'til very recent years. Is it a relatively new term for orchids?

The correct term for this structure is bract. It is a leafy structure that protects the tender tissue of the young, not yet formed pseudobulb and leaves as they're growing. I had never heard the common term "sarong" used for this until a couple of years ago when a few members used it here. I recommend using the proper term for it as it eliminates confusion.

Originally Posted by grandmapenguin

rcb I checked the leaves and about five look like they are going to be history. They are one clump, very firm but withering, and color hue is changing.

If they're firm then they probably do not have bacterial rot. How is the colour changing? Are they still green but just a different colour green? Are they rippled? If so it sounds to me like severe dehydration probably due to either 1) being grown in severe conditions, or 2) severe root loss.

[grandmapenguin]

Thank you Kevin and rcb for your thoughts. I feel we are all leaning to underwatering. Me included. I try not to water too much. But also my humidity is down around 35 to 40. I just took a few more pictures. The flowers are bursting forth. I also tried to show the condition of the affected leaves.

I must also insert here this plant suffered a bit of intense light burn on two leaves when I first got my T-5s. I have cut the leaves back and treated with Cinammon. I have also allowed more distance beneathe the plant and lights.
But these are not the leaves that are affected.

[kmarch]

Yes, the plant does look dehydrated to me. This could be caused from underwatering, severe conditions (such as hot or very dry conditions), or root loss. You mentioned it is both dry and that you may be underwatering. When I grew cattleyas indoors in Michigan, it could get very dry in the summer. My cattleyas were all potted in medium bark, medium charcoal and medium perelite and I'd water once a week normally, about every 5 days when it was hot and dry. Assuming the roots are healthy (which I'm not sure if that's the case or not) the solution could be as easy as a slight increase in watering frequency.

I now have an Slc (I believe it is just Cattleya now) Anne Tapper which had rippled leaves similar to yours because I grew it outdoors in somewhat harsh conditions. That was about 3 years ago and only this year, after a couple years of improved conditions, did it actually send up a growth better than the previous year. The older leaves are better but still a bit rough. It's in the green house now and getting watered at least once a week and is improving noticably now.

When did you last repot this cattleya? What were the roots like when it was last repotted?

[rcb]

Grandma, yes it looks like the plant is sacrificing the older growths for the new one. Again, without seeing the roots, it could either be from underwatering, or root rot to overwatering. But if I had to guess, I'd say underwatering considering it is in bud. Your p'bulbs also look a little more shriveled that I prefer mine to be. Now, in the winter time, I do withhold water a little bit, I prefer to give mine a rest, but if they are actively growing or budding, I don't do this.

another thing to think of is since you have them under T-5s, the plant is going to be needing more water than compared to not under T-5s.

So what to do - I would increase watering a little bit, see if that helps, but do make sure they dry out in between waterings. And when you water, you thoroughly soak it right? either use the skewer method, or weight of the pot to determine when to water.

How do you judge when to water?

[rcb]

oops Kevin, we were posting at the same time.

[kmarch]

No worries Renee, our posts were similar which suggests we're on the right track.

[grandmapenguin]

thank you both for your replies. I feel it is probably the T-5s and underwatering. I repotted it 09/09 and it looked good. I did keep it outdoors and it looke dgreat. I think the combination of T-5s, getting burned by them, and underwatering is the culprit.

When I water I put the plant in a bowl and water. I let it sit in the runoff for anywhere from 15-30 minutes. I don't use skewers I use the feel method.
I know my humidity is low so this I will have to work on and will water a little more often than once a week.

Thank you both again.
Terry