Need advice on this SLC before i give up on it

[silken]

Originally Posted by Bud

silken is right, it can be divided into set of 4 bulbs and maybe it will give you little plants that will produce sheaths...or you can just let it become a large specimen and watch it give you a magnificent show of blooms...
too bad silken he is in NZ...both of us wont have a chance even if he mails it to us the customs oficers will just thrash it...

Yea, those darn customs officers!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Be patient. There is nothing horribly wrong with your Slc. It got sunburnt at one point in time, but I see that there has long since been a correction to that mistake.

As was mentioned, it will most likely only bloom once a year. Usually during spring.

I would also reduce the pot size. Too big a pot will cause problems with the media retaining too much moisture for too long. Long term exposure to excessive amounts of moisture will result in the cells of the roots bursting. Dead root cells = food for microbes = root rot.

If you want to see blooms, I don't recommend dividing it right now.

[jai_star]

Ok thanks for all the advice just went and repotted back into a pot enough to fit snugly into it. There is a lot of new roots everwhere so this little guy wants to survive, i have to admit I have neglected it since it didn't give me any blooms well it will have all winter to rest then hopefully see some blooms in spring.

BTW you guys are so lucky in the states there are so many orchid growers just looking online I'm so jelous and no i would not even consider shipping orchids overseas too pricey

[james mickelso]

Do not pot this plant now. It is Fall in NZ and you do not have any newly emerging growths. Keep the plant a little on the dry side. Once you have new growths emerging from the base of the mature pbulbs and new roots that are 2-3 cm long, then divide it into two pieces. Put it into a small 6cm pot and water/feed it. It is getting on mid Fall right now and there won't be enough light and warmth. Just wait until your spring, when you have new growing pbulbs and new roots. This plant as it is right now is fine. Just don't water it too much. It will be fine. If you repot it at the wrong time in it's life cycle it will set it back at least a year. I don't see any new sheaths growing. It will flower when it is happy. The leaves do look a little dark to me. It may need more light but never direct light. Bright is fine but not direct. If the window aty which you grow it has direct light, all you need to do is put up some sheer material that will diffuse the light but not diminish it. So don't do anything with it until spring when new growths appear on the base of the mature pbulbs, don't water it too much, don't fertilize it, and don't repot it now. Give it as much diffuse light as you can and maybe mist it daily if it is dry inside your home. Next blooming season you will enjoy some very nice flowers. Good luck.

[james mickelso]

As for the second part of your question, no. These are mature pbulbs and have no sheaths growing. At this stage of their lifecycle there would be sheaths and flower buds already growing on them. And you would know what they are. I see no growth that looks like a flower bud. Just follow what I wrote you and next season you should have flowers. Look at the very base of the pbulbs that you have. Right above the junction of the old and new pbulb. You will see a little bump. Sometimes these are somewhat pointed. These are the next years growth. On this plant, thesde are what matter. They will start to swell and grow in the spring (NZ spring) and when the second leaf unfolds, if you have taken care of the needs of the plant, what will look like another leaf will start to push up in the fold of the second leaf. This is the flower sheath and as the new pbulb matures you will see the flowers growing inside the sheath. It will take about 3-4 months for the flowers to grow and push out of the sheath and bloom if it is warm enough, has enough light, and you fertiolized it properly. Good luck.

[jai_star]

hay james,

thanks for all the great feedback I know what you mean about the little tips then turning into bulbs , because when I purchased it it went through this cycle however seen in my care and enviroment those sheaths produced no flowers and there were time when it rotted and went mouldy inside the sheath, I got told not to get the plant wet but I only water at the roots not overhead so am not sure what went wrong there. I already see there are a few of those " tips" which are next season growth already at the base of the p.bulbs but I will not hold my breathe on any flowers as I find this plant very high maintenace I only have one Cattleya and its this one

[james mickelso]

The sheaths sometimes hold too much moisture and the flower buds get mold and rot. I have found that I have to cut the flower sheaths off very carefully when I see the flower buds developing inside the sheaths. I live at the beach in So. Cal and it is fairly humid most of the time. I have learned to water sparingly and that catts and it's cousins don't need constant water and almost none when it is either cold or in winter. I have some catts on wooden mounts that are doing very well being watered only every few days at most. When it warms up (65+) I start to water a little more. SLC don't like to be wet. Just enough to hydrate their roots and then not again until they are dry. From what I can see in the pics, your SLC is doing very well and just needs a little summer heat to get going. Everything you see in the pot is finished growing. What is important is what will grow from the pbulbs. That is where you need to concentrate your energy. Water sparringly until the new growths put out roots. Then start increasing your watering. But do not let the media stay wet. Once the new growths take hold, root well, then thiunk about dividing. If the new roots are 2-4 cm long, you can divide and pot without worrying about losing any future flowers on the new growths. catts and their relations are easy to grow and very rewarding. If I can grow them, anyone can. Let me know how you do. Email me any time.