Cattleya amethystoglossa 'H&R' x 'Camino Real'

[smweaver]

Well, that's one big amethystoglossa. At first, in an effort to minimize the amount of envy I was experiencing, I convinced myself that you were probably just around 5' 1" tall, which would make that monster of a cattleya a little less impressive. But seriously, that's a pretty outstanding amethystoglossa. Is this the one you're thinking about crossing with the bicolor? Congratulations on the plants. They're a testament to both outstanding genetics and a high level of experience in cultivation.

[SaraJean]

Originally Posted by smweaver

At first, in an effort to minimize the amount of envy I was experiencing,

Same, lol

Seriously though, that is a FANTASTIC bloom!

[isurus79]

Thanks, y’all!

Originally Posted by smweaver

Well, that's one big amethystoglossa. At first, in an effort to minimize the amount of envy I was experiencing, I convinced myself that you were probably just around 5' 1" tall, which would make that monster of a cattleya a little less impressive. But seriously, that's a pretty outstanding amethystoglossa. Is this the one you're thinking about crossing with the bicolor? Congratulations on the plants. They're a testament to both outstanding genetics and a high level of experience in cultivation.

Unfortunately not! This amethystoglossa is likely a 3N, which is how Roy breeds them. They’re basically dead ends for breeding because a 3N is very unlikely to breed with anything.

Your bicolor is probably also polyploid (hence the gigantic size!) but is probably 4N, which is very easy to breed with. A 4N can breed with other 4N plants or with a diploid to create 3N progeny, which would be a dead end again.

[smweaver]

Oh, that's right. You mentioned that during a previous discussion (Harry's "insurance policy," so to speak, to keep nefarious competitors from using what he's worked so hard to develop for their own breeding purposes).