Bubble leaf with myterious shadow

[Bulbofett]

This Cattleya started doing something weird. You can tell I don't have many Catts in my collection lol.

This bubbly leaf has a dark object on the inside. There has been a surge of black ants as a result, and I'm afraid those are a mass of aphids or some other pest on the inside. Gotta get some granules to take care of those ants today

I'm at a loss as to what to do. How can I remove that object? And why is the leaf all bubbly?

[tucker85]

That 'bubble leaf' is called a sheath. The dark objects inside are flower buds. As they grow larger they'll break out of the sheath and bloom. Congratulations. The ants are just attracted to the extra sugar being produced by the plant as it gets ready to bloom. Don't worry about the ants. And just treat the orchid like you normally do, don't change anything, and hopefully you'll have some nice blooms.

[Optimist]

That is a flower forming! How fun! Just let it continue to grow. I found with one of mine, I needed to open the pod a bit to let it out. Cross that bridge when you come to it!

[DeaC]

Do not fret,Bulbofett! Buds inside of a sheath are what you want. Sometimes the buds will break open the sheath and keep growing but sometimes one may need to carefully slit open the sheath to continue the "birthing" process. Just make sure that when you water,don't get the sheath wet or the buds inside wet. Please post pix after the happy event...no cigars necessary!

[MattWoelfsen]

If you keep your Cattleya well hydrated, the sheath will remain green and pliable, it will be easy for the flower to break through. However, if the sheath becomes slightly drier--usually along the edges of the sheath, that is when you'll need to help it break out. At least that has been my experience. Congratulations!

[judith_arquette]

Yay! Congrats!!!

[Bulbofett]

Well don't I feel silly now, hahah. I was getting ready to perform surgery on this plant. Makes sense now that it is a spike. I guess I didn't think about that being a possibility since this plant went through some major sunburn at the beginning of the season. I figured with all of that stress it wouldn't bloom for a while.

I'm doing a serious happy dance right now for this plant to bloom! This is C. Caguas Ruby. There aren't any bloom pictures online so I forget what color they will be.

Thanks All!

[Bulbofett]

No surgery required thankfully

Why can't I find any info on this orchid? I search C. Caguas Ruby, but nothing comes up. I have the pollen and pod parent names if needed.

[DeaC]

C. Landate x C. aurantiaca?

[sweetjblue]

Description of the one awarded plant of Caguas Ruby per Orchid Wiz

"Five flowers and four buds on two inflorescences; sepals and petals glowing red-orange with barely visible darker spotting; labellum white, veined and overlaid with purple, suffusing to red at apex; flowers heavily influenced by C. aurantiaca; substance very heavy; texture waxy."

Awarded to 'Dootsie' earned an HCC 78 points October 6, 1984

Sounds like it should be a beauty! Please make sure to post your pics when it blooms!!

Judi

---------- Post added at 08:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:10 PM ----------

Originally Posted by DeaC

C. Landate x C. aurantiaca?

Yup that's the one.