Cattleya psudobulb, how to tell which is oldest?

[HuniGems182]

I have a lc mini purple blue hawaii, it is beautiful and healthy but i dont know which pbulb is the oldest and which is the newest...also it has many p bulbs and some are plump and some seemed shriveled a bit..are they the oldest? There is also a tiny...and i mean tiny, little pbulb and leaf in the pot too...is that a baby? Im new to catts.so sorry in advance, thx everyone.

[Roberta]

If you can post a photo, we can be sure that we are giving you the correct information. If the plant is healthy and growing well, the wrinkled, sometimes leafless and/or yellowing p-bulbs are the oldest. If yours is a very young plant, the tiny one might even be the oldest (from its seedling days) Or it could be a new growth. It may have new growth in more than one direction if it is happy - that is best of all, since you will get flowers from the new growths. So show us the plant and we can go from there.

[HuniGems182]

Here are a few picks.. One has the side with the suspected older p bulb..the shriveling one..and one shows the tiny guy, and one shows the new plump p bulbs.

[Dollythehun]

I'd love to answer this but, Roberta will. However, your pictures raise some questions for me: Has this plant bloomed for you (it looks to me that it has)? How much light does it get because it seems much taller and greener than mine. I see it came from Hausermann's, so it must be the same as mine. I ask this because the plants look so vastly different. Mine has grown like a weed and has had very high light (apparently).

[HuniGems182]

Yes its from hauserman, i just got it about 3 weeks ago. When i bought it it said blooming size.. Im not sure if it has bloomed before..because this is my first catt, but it does have multiple green things poking out of multiple leaves, with the dry sheath stuff at the tip. I keep it under fluorescent light, 3 compact bulbs, two warm and one cool. I can post better picks if you would like to compare a bit. Im new to these and wanted to learn about them, i have had phals for over a year and was getting bored.ready to try other genera.
Thx in advance for replying.

[Dollythehun]

Well, Leafmite and Roberta helped me with mine It was also my first Catt. I had a couple before but couldn't give them enough natural light. Plus, they were smaller.

I repotted mine in medium bark and crushed eggshells and put them on top of the mix. I put it outside for the summer in full sun but under a thin beach umbrella (my orchid cabana). I watered every couple of days and it just took off! My fertilizing is erratic and I don't always measure (gasp)...but it flourished. It bloomed from 4 leads. But mine looks vastly different from yours. I have it inches from an LED strip light, so it's lighter green and shorter, I suppose. I think I have a picture.

[Roberta]

Answer to the question "what is old and what is new" - the new growths are the plump ones with all the roots.The smaller, somewhat shriveled ones are the old ones. The tiny one is probably the original one - so this plant has been growing beautifully... when the new p-bulbs are bigger than their predecessors, that's great. The "green things" poking out from leaves are probably developing flowers. (Can you post a photo that shows them?) I don't see the flower sheaths, but I do see at least one cut spent spike in one of the photos, so this plant has bloomed before. You will get gratification soon!
If you were going to repot, now is the time - lots of new roots. However, it looks to me like the pot is big enough, and the bark looks good, so it can easily wait a year. If you do repot, be very careful of those new roots - the little green tips are extremely fragile, and if damaged they stop growing. Since it looks like it is not desperate for repotting, I suggest putting a tag in the pot with a date about 3 or 4 weeks ago. That is when the new roots probably emerged, and that would have been the ideal time for potting. Next year, if you pot it on that date (like early January) you will have it firmly in the pot with new bark just as the new roots are emerging.

[HuniGems182]

Thank you both for replying, your catt looks great, yes a bit lighter green which is better i read. I did repot this guy once i received it as it was touching the edges and about to grow out of the small green plastic pot. The new lead comming off a p bulb has sap so i think thats good. Do you two think im providing enough light? Im not sure how fast they react to changes, it is new in my environment. Here are pictures i tried to show the sheaths growing out of the leaves in the pictures.

[Dollythehun]

I do think I see a sheath in photo 1. It looks good. I may be giving too much light.

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by HuniGems182

Thank you both for replying, your catt looks great, yes a bit lighter green which is better i read. I did repot this guy once i received it as it was touching the edges and about to grow out of the small green plastic pot. The new lead comming off a p bulb has sap so i think thats good. Do you two think im providing enough light? Im not sure how fast they react to changes, it is new in my environment. Here are pictures i tried to show the sheaths growing out of the leaves in the pictures.

If you just repotted, that's great because it is rooting like crazy. I don't see a sheath... in photo 1, it looks like it might have though about it and decided not. Actually on this hybrid, you may find the flowers popping out as a new leaf opens, or even get the occasional growth with only a tiny leaf, and a flower (These odd blooming patterns are characteristic of the two parents and will be completely normal but different than the way most Catts bloom). In one of the photos, is that a "scorch" pattern on one of the leaves? These guys like lots of light but not abrupt change. If the sun coming in the window is getting the leaves hot to the touch, it's too much intensity. Your fingers touching the leaves where the light is hitting will be better than your eyes for determining "too much".If hot to the touch, move back a bit.