Laelia (Cattleya?) purpata watering

[SouthPark]

Originally Posted by Jeff214

If standard cattleya conditions are fine, then repotting to a coarse media and lowering water frequency should hopefully help (and a breath of fresh, outdoor air!).

Definitely Jeff. The purpurata will certainly handle coarse media. Also - I found that watering the media in a wide pot away from the most concentrated regions of roots (eg. away from the central regions of the pot) is quite workable and effective. This doesn't mean that we can't water the middle regions. We can - but just place some limit on it.

[Oyarzabal]

Purpuratas as tough as nails. If they are shriveling that means that they are vastly underwater. Water is a function of the media more than of the orchid. All my plants get water every day for a long time.(automatically.) They do not rot because they are on a media that do not rot. Orchids will adjust their root to the media they are in and that goes from air to water, so the range is huge. You just have to be consistent and water according to the media.

[SouthPark]

Originally Posted by Oyarzabal

Purpuratas as tough as nails. If they are shriveling that means that they are vastly underwater.

It could well be Ovarz! Although, overwatering - or overly wet for relatively long periods could lead to root rot too. And then root rot can result in shriveling too.

[Jeff214]

Update:

While it was suffering under my care, indoors... It's beginning to take off outside. Multiple growths on the L. purpurata, L. Pulcherrima.

It's a bit embarrassing to show these... but I'm glad these are doing better.

[Oyarzabal]

Agree. Consistency is the key.

[SouthPark]

Originally Posted by Jeff214

It's a bit embarrassing to show these... but I'm glad these are doing better.

Not at all Jeff ------ as the sharing of information about how to grow the various orchids well - including these ones - is a great thing for the orchids and for the growers.

Seeing 3 new growths like that is a great thing.

[Jeff214]

...and two years later

They are all doing well, soaking up the full desert sun. And now... I see the first spikes developing on C. Pulcherrima!

[estación seca]

In my conditions I need to keep these, their near relatives and hybrids quite wet. Temperatures in the summer grow room are around 85 degrees F / 30C most of the time, and relative humidity around 60%-70%. Plants in semi-hydro shrivel if I don't water every day, even when water remains in the reservoir. Seedlings I receive in sphagnum must be stood in dishes of water or they dry out too fast.

Others here have much higher humidity than I do. I think your plants look excessively thirsty and are getting more sun than I would give.

[Jeff214]

Thanks, I agree with you on both points but this is what I've settled on for these brazillian laelias. I'm under a drought so I've reduced the watering to half or to a third of what I normally do. I've been putting saucers under all my orchids to combat that but I've run out of them at the moment. As for the sun, I was moving all my orchids (couple of hundred) every few weeks to avoid full sun... but I'm tired of it.