Buyer alert - DancingdogOrchids Cattleya purchase!

[sskmaestro]

Hi,

Recently bought a Cattleya orchid. Seller advertised that it’s a big division of Cattleya. I went ahead as it is a big division.

Received the plant, and it has 12 pseudo bulbs. With multiple growth points. Was happy looking at the plant. Leaves are very healthy.

Fast fwd 3 days..... I generally and randomly micro observe my orchids (like most of you). My other Cattleya is starting to recover after a repot and giving new roots.

I thought, let’s closely observe this new big-division Cattleya. There are new roots emerging for this one as well from 2 end points.

Then I thought, it’s right time to repot this new one as new roots are starting to emerge.

I opened the 4 inch pot. Firstly, there is a huge pile of decomposed bark! To my surprise there is a decaying ball of spaghnum moss in the center of the orchid.....

I can see many mushy roots...... I started cleaning them and pulling off the mushy matter of the roots......

Fast fwd 30 minutes, the orchid started to wiggle up and move freely in the center. Slowly the tangled roots started to come out and it showed up the true face! It’s a 2 orchid combo and not a large division as advertised!

OK! 2 orchids now means, chances of multiple spikes....... now started to clean the roots of plants individually. Finally I have to clean up 85-90% of the roots!

Sprayed hydrogen peroxide..... and again planted the 2 plants in the same pot. But with 100% charcoal as medium. (Cannot dare to add spaghnum moss after seeing the sorry state of the roots)

Attached the pictures.

This is the sorry story of the whole orchid business in the world! Only the initial cultivator who started these as seedlings in a flask has some love and care for them.

Poor things, they move from place to place, shop to shop and finally end up to one orchid hobbist!

It’s the cultivators and the hobbists who shower love and life on them!

Btw, the name of the orchid is BLC Blanche Aisaka Yuki Cattleya!

[sskmaestro]

Here’s the picture of orchid on the day of arrival!

[Roberta]

It is certainly disappointing to be misled by a seller like that! At least the plant(s) are starting to push new roots, so will probably be OK. (Glad that the new roots inspired you to look "deeper" .. you no doubt caught it in time.)

I looked it up... actual name is Blc. Blanche Aisaka 'Yuki' A real beauty!

[sskmaestro]

Have a question.

Does the 2% hydrogen peroxide kill the young roots ? (These roots are way too young)

[SouthPark]

Originally Posted by sskmaestro

Have a question.

Does the 2% hydrogen peroxide kill the young roots ? (These roots are way too young)

The recommendation is to not use hydrogen peroxide on any roots of any orchid. Better off spraying the plant and roots with a fungicide, such as Mancozeb.

I believe that hydrogen peroxide might not kill the orchid, but it can set the roots and the plant back - a lot. As in - the orchid may take a while to recover from the shot of hydrogen peroxide.

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by sskmaestro

Have a question.

Does the 2% hydrogen peroxide kill the young roots ? (These roots are way too young)

I never use the stuff myself, but others have suggested that it damages roots. Roots, especially newly-developing ones, have microscopic hairs, and I would think those would be quite vulnerable because they have very high surface area, and they're fragile. Physan is pretty benign, and worth spraying on areas that show rot. Generally, I just rinse off the icky stuff with the hose, and then pot into fresh bark. I have found that damaged areas dry up, and I don't have to do anything more than that. Also, if there are roots that have lost their velamin but are firmly attached, I leave them. I don't know how efficient they are at hydrating the plant (they may do a little) but they do serve to anchor the newly-repotted plant. That's vital, since new roots do have those fragile tips, and any wobbling can damage them.

Some people on the Board also use systemic fungicides... again I have not found a need for them. Now, in fairness, I mostly grow outside, where air exchange is essentially infinite. (I do have a small greenhouse, but it is far from air-tight, and it doesn't need to be where I live) Treatments may be a lot more necessary in the confined space of a cold-climate greenhouse.

[SouthPark]

I believe that systematic fungicides are probably not needed most of the time. Totally agree with Roberta.