Mormodes andicola 'Pollito' and Mormodes cartonii

[Bud]

Magnificent display of blooms ! I can see that the winter rest was observed and with precision timing the moisture on the spikes was given correct attention to produce such robust form.
The colors are just so festive and yummy.

[kavanaru]

Originally Posted by Bud

Magnificent display of blooms ! I can see that the winter rest was observed and with precision timing the moisture on the spikes was given correct attention to produce such robust form.
The colors are just so festive and yummy.

well, actually these two had more of a spring early summer rest They did not want to go dormant until end of January....

on the other hand, in order to bloom well Catasetinae (and Mormodes in particular), more important than the winter rest is providing them with lots of water and fertilizer during the growing season. If you manage to have a strong new PB (the larger the better), you can skip the resting period and have a great bloom next time.. However, and even though I know some people who just do not let their Catasetinae rest, as the plants can grow continuously under certain conditions, I would not recommend this approach every year...

[Bud]

You are right, a strong new PB must always be larger than the others....the old roots do not matter.... Its the new roots that need to be nourished well. Its the warmer months and these loves to feed and drink a lot....

[kavanaru]

Originally Posted by Bud

You are right, a strong new PB must always be larger than the others....the old roots do not matter.... Its the new roots that need to be nourished well. Its the warmer months and these loves to feed and drink a lot....

the story with the roots is not 100% right! it is widespread misconception that more often than necessary brings more negative results than positive. It is true that a strong Catasetinae can be transplanted and all roots can be cut-off, and it will raise a strong PB and will bloom... if you keep doing this every year (as often recommended), the result is that you end up with a plant not performing very well and which could easily die.

Catasetinae perform better if you do not repot them more often than every 3 or 4 years, and you do not disturb the old roots. Opposite to "popular" believe, they are still active! You can see that when you leave a Catasetum in the pot without any watering during winter, and the PBs become severy dehydrated. If you water them carefully, you will see the plant rehydrating and the old PBs recovering the full shape (even if you still have no new roots!! - be careful, due to risk of rot in cultivation when doing this!)
Furthermore, you can see that a good blooming Catasetum, will normally produce less flowers the year that has been repotted... Many of the Catasetum pileatum you see with spikes with 10 or more flowers, have normally not been repotted for at least the last 2 seasons, and after being repotted, they normally produce few flowers...
Mormodes in particular are very sensitive to the "standard recommended" yearly repotting... the two plants shown here have not been repotted for two seasons, and will not be repotted until 2013 or 2014!

There are many widespread myths about the culture of this group, which originated by the fact that their culture in greenhouses is not always the easiest and plants can be very sensitive to rot (normally not the case when grown outside in the tropics!)