Did i sabotage blooming?

[elitebettas]

Hey guys,
I have a nice cattleya. Leading growth was in sheath when i got it, then it started to get buds in the sheath. Then i somehow got water in the sheath around the pseudobulb (not the flower sheath) and i swear the next day the sheath turned yellowish brown so i peeled it off. Buds in the healthy flower sheath stopped growing. Then it shot out a new lead, it matured lightning fast and now has a nice spike with two buds....so what did i do?, watered and somehow got water in the PSUEDOBULB sheath of the spiking/budding lead. I just know by tomorrow morning it will be yellow, then brown but hope that like the last one, when i remove the sheath around the psuedobulb, it doesn't stop the flowers from forming/ opening... Anyone ever experience removing a sheath from a pseudobulb too soon and having the plant abort blooming...It's SOO close, lol

[kmarch]

I dont' think the browning of the sheath and the delay in blooming are related. Cattleyas sometimes have a growth mature that never blooms and sometimes they have a growth mature that may bloom later. This is quite common and nothing to be concerned about. Sometimes you can even see buds inside a sheath and they will just sit there for weeks before starting to grow.

The "sheaths" around the pseudobulb (properly called "bracts") protect the new growth while it is forming. After the growth is mature, the protective bracts are no longer needed so they die off. his too is perfectly normal and to be expected. I don't think getting water on the bract and it dieing off are related.

Right now I have a Cattleya with buds emerging from the bud sheath and the protective bracts around the pseudobulb are turning brown. I also have a different Cattleya on which you can see buds in the sheath but they're just sitting there for the time being not doing much. They'll eventually start growing again though.

While I 've not seen your Catt, based on your description it sounds like it is doing exactly what it is uspposed to. Enjoy it! It will eventually bloom for you but as all orchids it will bloom when it is ready