First Catasetums

[jcec1]

Originally Posted by WaterWitchin

Okay, I don't want to research all too much. Mostly because I'm lazy and y'all can give me good advice. Tell me literally size difference "space-wise" for this guys. And difference in size between the mini ones and regular ones.

And I looked at Fred Clark's site. Strange...you get a picture of each parent, but not of the plant itself? Is this something usual with Ctsm or???

---------- Post added at 02:46 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:38 PM ----------

I had an opportunity to buy a huge one of those really black ones After Dark or something, like seven or eight humongous big bulbs, for a hundred bucks. Had I known better, would have known I was getting a "deal." But I don't care for the color (blasphemy, I know). Should have bought it, divided it, and sold it.

Anyway, that's the only Ctsm I've ever seen in person. Never seen one in bloom, in person. So it's hard other than that one to guestimate size.

Mine are all in 4" pots or smaller, the plants themselves grow in two dimensions, but will have a spread of about 2 feet.

[WaterWitchin]

Three foot!!

[jcec1]

Originally Posted by WaterWitchin

Three foot!!

This is my latest to bloom, the green box it is sitting on is about 8 or 9 inches so gives an idea of growth.

[DirtyCoconuts]

monn. millennium witchcraft.


Roots, flowers and moss by J Solo, on Flickr

[JScott]

FDK After Dark can get huge. My Cycnodes Taiwan Gold 'Orange' is much more moderately sized. The mature bulbs on mine usually get up to about six or 8 inches. They are much taller than that when the leaves are still on, maybe double that height, but that is a lot smaller than After Dark. I think Taiwan Gold is a good one to start with. There's a yellow one and an orange one that are both readily available.

[Dorchid]

Originally Posted by DirtyCoconuts

monn. millennium witchcraft.


Roots, flowers and moss by J Solo, on Flickr

That bulb is gonna be huge!

What’s the back bulb look like?

[hypostatic]

Originally Posted by JScott

I give them TONS of water in the summer. They are always damp, if not wet, and they grow like crazy. Then once the bulbs mature and the leaves start to yellow, just stop watering, and wait for the blooms, and they will come in the winter.

I watered my largest ctsms TWICE today. Like, they all have a little water reservoir, and they were empty both times.

I don't think I have crazy growing conditions either. Like, the catts next to them were watered once this week...

[DirtyCoconuts]

Originally Posted by Dorchid

That bulb is gonna be huge!

What’s the back bulb look like?

a LOT smaller

i got this guy from a clearance table at a nursery too late to repot so i did the best i could and placed the sphag in a pot with rocks and it FLOURISHED beyond expectation and it is actually really tippy in that pot...i keep it facing the other way next to two tall towers of pots for support LOL

[JScott]

Originally Posted by hypostatic

I watered my largest ctsms TWICE today. Like, they all have a little water reservoir, and they were empty both times.

I don't think I have crazy growing conditions either. Like, the catts next to them were watered once this week...

I have a lot of friends in Brazil, and I usually go down and spend every summer with them. One of them is an orchid enthusiast like us, and he grows a lot of Catasetinae (very easily, since they are native to his region in Brazil). He grows them in hanging 2 liter soda bottles. He cuts the narrow top off, plants the plant in the bottle, and then drills holes about 4 inches from the bottom of the bottle to create a reservoir in the bottom of the bottle, and his do great. I let mine sit in trays of water. When the trays are empty, I fill them back up, so mine are not constantly wet like his are, but I've good success with my method, as they are wet much of the time, but never less than moist, certainly never near dry.

[WaterWitchin]

Wow... these guys are much bigger when you see them with something for comparison. Thanks to all! More questions...

What about these "mini catasetum" it talks about on Fred Clark's site? Size difference??

Why does jcec's have leaves and blooms at the same time? I thought they bloomed after all the leaves fell off? I must have missed something...

I can easily do the required heat in summer, but what I read says 75-80F days in winter... I couldn't easily do that. Comments about winter temps please?

I get it that they need really high light in summer. Once the leaves fall off, does it matter or can they be kept at a lower light level? (I'm thinking if my greenhouse doesn't come this year about shelving space for high light in the Batcave)

High fertilizer when growing... I can use Osmocote, right?

The water I can easily do. Wet when leaves, dry when no leaves, right? (please spare me the details about when to start watering... I already read enough about that here.)