Catasetum with yellowing leaf (while blooming)

[jenilee]

So I just brought home a new Frilly Doris Catasetum. (I was beyond excited since I have never had a catasetum and it was only in bud at the time so I had NO IDEA what it would look like....pleasantly surprised when it bloomed) I purposefully didn't look it up because i thought it would be fun to wake up to a bloom one day!
It had two stems (correct terminology???) with 10-15 buds on each. One stem has been bloomed for about 2 weeks now and two flowers are wilting and drying up about mid stem....any idea why? I assume if it was natural bloom cycle it would have started at the top or bottom.
The other stem looks about ready to bloom...the buds have grown quite a bit and the spotty flower is starting to show through the outside of the bud. The bud at the very tip has not grown and looks like it had bud blast possibly...(picture attached)
Next problem is that the bottom leaf is yellowing...I believe that is normal for the catasetum but I would have expected it after all the blooms fell off...not mid blooming season....thoughts?

(I hope to one day be an orchid genius so lay the knowledge on me!!....currently the best I can tell my friends is "stop putting ice on your home depot orchids!!!!!!!!")

[jenilee]

Couple notes....I don't have a pic of the yellow leaf or it in bloom....I can get one later if need be. The pics attached were the day I brought it home...The more I look at it, the more I wonder if that last little "thing" on the stem isn't even a bud at all.....

[rocio]

Hi,

I'm no expert in this specie... however, the leaves in the picture look a bit dehydrated to me (please someone correct me if I'm wrong!!).
About yellow leaves, maybe this article I found online could help: Orchids with yellow leaves

Regards!!!

[jenilee]

That's a great blog post! Thanks for sharing!

I could be wrong (again, my first catasetum) but I believe the leaves are supposed to have that "frilly" nature to them....at least that's what I've seen online.

[katrina]

Originally Posted by jenilee

It had two stems (correct terminology???) with 10-15 buds on each. One stem has been bloomed for about 2 weeks now and two flowers are wilting and drying up about mid stem....any idea why? I assume if it was natural bloom cycle it would have started at the top or bottom.

Inflorescence or spike would be the correct terminology but I think everyone would understand stem. The mid stem flowers drying up could be the result of the polinia being triggered and shot. Once that is shot then the flowers instantly begin to fade. It's disappointing but nothing to be concerned about.

Originally Posted by jenilee

The bud at the very tip has not grown and looks like it had bud blast possibly...(picture attached)

Sounds like bud blast...again, nothing to be concerned about. They could've been slightly damaged or it could be a result of the change of environment.

Originally Posted by jenilee

Next problem is that the bottom leaf is yellowing...I believe that is normal for the catasetum but I would have expected it after all the blooms fell off...not mid blooming season....thoughts?

Just a bottom leaf (or even a couple)...don't worry. It's just part of the maturation process...some Ctsm will lose a couple of the lower leaves as the pbulb fattens and matures.

BTW - w/the bloom...some Ctsm bloom early in their annual cycles (like Frilly Doris)...others won't bloom until all leaves have fallen...and still others will bloom sometime during the middle of the growth cycle. You also have some that will bloom multiple times during the cycle...early up to late in the season. There's a good deal of variety w/in the group.

It sounds like everything you're describing is perfectly normal. Just to be on the safe side though...a pic or two could help in confirming nothing funky is happening.


Your first Ctsm...ahhhhh I remember that! Now I'm addicted and I have...uh...uh...Oh hell...off the top of my head I had no idea how many I have.

EDIT -- I think your leaves look fine but make sure you're watering this plant enough. They like a LOT of light, a LOT water and fairly heavy fert while actively growing.

[jenilee]

Originally Posted by katrina

The mid stem flowers drying up could be the result of the polinia being triggered and shot. Once that is shot then the flowers instantly begin to fade.

I think I can deduce what you mean but just to further my education....do you mean that the individual flower's pollen was disturbed and now that flower will die quicker?

Also, THANK YOU for all the information!! I learned a ton from those few paragraphs!!!

[Greenthumb.5]

The flower buds look healthy. At the tip, it seems to be all young tissue that has not produced any chlorophyll in the part. But if I am looking at the spike wrong. One other possibility would be bud blast. The plant looks healthy and the leaves should look like that. The leaves itself are ribbed and if it was dehydrated, the baackbulbs would be shriveled before the newer growth or the current year's growth would show any signs of dehydration.

[katrina]

Originally Posted by jenilee

I think I can deduce what you mean but just to further my education....do you mean that the individual flower's pollen was disturbed and now that flower will die quicker?

Yea, sort of. This video will do a better job of explaining that my words ever could.

Pollination mechanism in Catasetum fimbriatum (Orchidaceae) - YouTube

Ain't orchid sex fascinating?!!


Some Ctsm are super sensitive and can be triggered by a strong breeze whereas others take more pressure. Either way, once it's triggered and the polinia is gone...the flower fades and it goes quickly.

I cringe trying to get some to shows/meetings because I know any jostling will cause them to trigger and then they are shot.

[jenilee]

Couple pics from today....
-yellowed leaf
-blooms
-mid spike dried up blooms
-strange little undeveloped bud

[Greenthumb.5]

Ok. Your catasetum is healthy. You can remove all of the dried up blooms to prevent short life of the spike and diseases. The strange end that you see is most likely not going to form on the circumstances that the other buds are all equal sized.