Why did my l. reginae turn red?!

[korxi]

Hi all!

Just a question regarding the l. reginae quicky project plant.
During the winter my plant has been maturing a new growth that is just about done now - nothing strange in that. However it is a very deep red color now starting to change over to green. I would expect it to do so if it had had plenty of light, but the winter has been dark here in Denmark and days were short to!
To make it even more weird, when I uploaded this photo in the gallery I noticed that the other PB's also had turned red, when I compared it to the first pic I uploaded..

Besides being a sunscreen, do you guys think this red color might also be a sign of stress due to lack of light??

It would be quite counter productive though, since blocking out the red light would mean even less light used for photosynthesis..

Any reasons are welcomed

Christian
Pic. 1 is now pic 2 is when I got it

p.s. When do the flowerspike and sheath develop?? I think I read somewhere that they develop inside the growing leaf before it opens.. Is that true or could I still get a flowering of this growth?

[cb977]

I know that most of the plants were delivered looking rather red but I don't know why one would become red except for high lighting.

It'll be interesting to see that those who know more have to say about it

[Ray]

Red color can be brought about by nutrient deficiencies, particularly phosphorus, but plants don't really need much phosphorus to start with, so that's extremely unlikely.

I have seen cold temperatures bring out red in phals, but I am not aware of that being possible in other plants.

[korxi]

Well it's getting a 20-20-20 fert like all my other plants so I wouldn't think it's nutrient deficiency, and temps havent been below 18-19 degrees celcius when it was coldest..

Maybe it's just one of those things we aren't meant to understand

Christian

[Ray]

I could agree with that!

[AHAB]

Martin Motes says in his book "FLORIDA ORCHID GROWING- MONTH BY MONTH" page 139 "the reddening is symptomatic of magnesium deficiency".
He suggests: potassium nitrate (13-0-44 also sold as saltpeter at farm/feed stores, sold for about one dollar per pound) and Magnesium sulfate (Epsom Salts) one TBS of each per gallon.
He states that mix should never be applied with fertilizer containing phosphorus. So it would be best to apply magnesium and potassium nitrate by themselves. Try alternating weekly applications with your regular fertilizer.
I hope this helps,
AHAB

[Tropic]

At elevations about 8000 ft. I have seen bromaliads and orchids with very red coloured leaves, with some orchids also having red or dark purple pseudobulbs. I have planted some of these plants here at my elevation of 4600 ft. and noticed that they soon lost their red or dark colouring though did well and equally prospered outdoors. So I do suspect that this colouring had a lot to do with light and in particular that of ultraviolet radiation. In reverse, I have also taken bromaliads from my farm to higher elevations and noticed that within a week they demonstrated a colour change and some even showed interesting beautiful patterns developed on their leaves. I noticed that their flower colours were apparently also more intense at higher elevations.

[gmdiaz]

Well, hmmm. . .mine is a tiny bit reddish on the tips and on the bulbs but most of the plant is actually green. It's getting a good amount of T5 light, supplemented with bright indirect sunlight.

I am thinking that with these Laelia's the red tone is good, maybe a defense against the high altitude sunlight. . .which is quite intense. UV rays just about ruin your eyes here at 8,600 ft. . .you have to wear sunglasses.

But I can't imagine why it would happen to a plant that hadn't received a lot of light. . .is it just a genetic factor? Plants that face some sort of crisis that can whip out the red protection survive better? Maybe in this case it just wasn't the appropriate action? Or maybe, because the plant wasn't receiving much light, it freaked when it did start receiving more light than it was used to?

OK, that was my best guess. . .to be honest, I am clueless. lolololol

[gmdiaz]

When I received mine there were a few dry papery sheaths coming out of the bulb at the base of the leaf. . .nothing in them though.

Recently, I noticed new RED growth. . .a pseudo bulb growing and a shadow inside one of the papery sheaths on one of the bulbs.

Interesting, don't you think that new growth is red? I've noticed this on my Laelia Santa Barbara Sunset 'Showtime' too. I've got super red leaves on my Laelia harpophylla! Definitely due to too much light!

Here's a picture of little reginae. . .I THINK I might get a bloom but have my fingers crossed!

[gmdiaz]

Okay, another line of thought. . .If both green and red hues seem to be healthy, why would the new growth be red on so many of the Laelia's?

There must be some sort of benefit. Protection of the outer layers. . .thickening or a hardening of the outer layers to protect against tissue damage or water loss? New growth could sure use protection as it's maturing.

Sure would be interesting to find out! Gonna go Google. . .

Everything I am reading, indicates a little too much light! What are the lighting conditions that you're growing yours in, specifically. Are you sure it's too little light?