Brassocattleya Hawaiian Agenda Florida Winter new roots/growth, and sunburn?

[FL_Orchid_Collector]

So one of my mom's Mother's Day orchids this year was the Bc. pictured and the other was Brassavola nodosa, both from Waldor.

Upon mounting I found the Bc. was extremely rootbound, to the point that I had to cut the pot off to get it out and the roots were beautiful and healthy. The rhizome had two growing points, was obviously in need of splitting, the right place to split it was easy to see and it was starting to split already so I did, and gave each division its own cork flat. They lost almost all of their roots within two days, which stunned me but then I heard that this just happens to catts.

Several days ago, one division finally grew a root from the new growth, and now that root is anchored in the cork. I packed a little more sphagnum around both divisions to give the new root a bit more moisture and darkness and to try to encourage the new growth on the other division to grow roots. Well, I don't see any roots yet, but one of the eyes on an old growth came out of dormancy so I guess I have two points of growth on it now but still no roots! Is there a way to influence what a catt will grow next or do they just grow whatever they think they want?

Another question: For a couple of weeks I've been moving the orchids which want bright light and are movable out to a sunny spot after watering starting between 9-10 am but moving that earlier now to 830-930am and again at 6-7 pm if it's not raining. So far it's been just the Catts and Brassavola but today I put my Neos, Encyc. tampensis, and Onc. "Sharry Baby" out as well and was planning to include them in that routine. Are these spots sunburn, and if so why are other leaves not affected when they're in almost the same sun? Is it from water on the leaves combined with the sun?

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by FL_Orchid_Collector

Another question: For a couple of weeks I've been moving the orchids which want bright light and are movable out to a sunny spot after watering starting between 9-10 am but moving that earlier now to 830-930am and again at 6-7 pm if it's not raining. So far it's been just the Catts and Brassavola but today I put my Neos, Encyc. tampensis, and Onc. "Sharry Baby" out as well and was planning to include them in that routine. Are these spots sunburn, and if so why are other leaves not affected when they're in almost the same sun? Is it from water on the leaves combined with the sun?

Looks like sunburn. And water droplets can concentrate the sun like little magnifying glasses. Some plants may be more susceptible to sunburn, or some may be getting just a little more shading than the toasted ones. Few if any orchids tolerate direct, full sun - all benefit from "diffusing" the light, whether by using shade cloth, or perhaps leaves of a tree. Cloud cover also helps. But definitely avoid direct blast of sun.

[estación seca]

Many orchids are grown in rather dark greenhouses. Unless you're familiar with your source, increase the light gradually when they come home with you.

[FL_Orchid_Collector]

Hmm, they seem to really like it and the Brass. is looking super happy, starting to anchor to its cork, the new growths are larger than the older, it came with some black leaf tips but none of the new ones have blackening tips, and one of the new growths has a second skinny leaf nestled in the groove of a larger leaf. I'll post a show-off pic tomorrow

I don't think watering too much earlier in the day is a good idea, you need photosynthesis to be up and running for them to take up water properly without edema right? I will make sure all leaves are dry before putting them out there. That big patch on the leaf happens to be where water would probably collect, the light would have been equally bright for most leaves, it was not dappled so I guess that's the best explanation. I will also move a little quicker and get them out and back earlier. I can also put them behind bushes where it IS dappled. Thanks for all the advice, you'd think all this info would be on AOS or other sources but they don't quite have "what to do if you bungle things", they seem to have "what to do perfectly when you're a technically perfect grower but the gods hate you and curse you with a problem" and "Here's what the full bloom looks like but you can guess yourself where the spike originates or what it looks like when it emerges or what the growth sequence is". Maybe not 100% but they do seem to showcase the highlights much more than nitty-gritty practical info beyond rough guidelines for temp, moisture, and light.

[Roberta]

It's best if you can find a place with the right conditions so that you don't have to keep moving the plants. Actually you will see lots of advice on watering in the morning - and that is important in cool weather, so that the plants aren't wet as the air cools off in the evening. Don't worry about timing the water for photosynthesis. Orchids are very good opportunists, storing water when they get it. (On a tree, with roots in the air, water doesn't stay around once it stops raining) In fact, many of them divide up the phytosynthetic process, doing part of the job in the day when they have sunlight, but with the stomata shut tight to conserve water. Then they finish the job in the cool of the evening, opening those stomata. (Look up CAM)

Now... when it is warm, it is good to water late in the day (or in the evening), so that the plants have more time to absorb it before it all evaporates. After all, in the tropics it rains in the afternoon and evening. Which likely is what happens at your house too. When you read generalized advice, always to good to ask "Why?"... after all, we know that the devil is in the details. You want to avoid "cold and wet", which can encourage rot. But you want to maximize the plant's opportunity to absorb water before it evaporates, so if the day is hot, you want to water when it is cooler. (I suspect that at this time of year you don't have to worry a lot about "cold and wet")

[FL_Orchid_Collector]

Yeah, that makes sense, if it's warm it will be fine, they do photosynthesis at night. I need to drill that into my head There are some sunnier spots up higher but right now I don't have a way to get the plants up there. I'm about to install some hangers and get some planter stands so I'll have more options for the light levels. It's a time and budget issue but I almost have enough orchids for now I'm thinking of getting another Neo, a Brassavola cucullata, and another Haraella odorata to see how outside compares to the terrarium. I'm sure you're right, it's from Taiwan which is known for high heat. Then more money can go into "furniture"

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by FL_Orchid_Collector

Yeah, that makes sense, if it's warm it will be fine, they do photosynthesis at night. I need to drill that into my head There are some sunnier spots up higher but right now I don't have a way to get the plants up there. I'm about to install some hangers and get some planter stands so I'll have more options for the light levels. It's a time and budget issue but I almost have enough orchids for now I'm thinking of getting another Neo, a Brassavola cucullata, and another Haraella odorata to see how outside compares to the terrarium. I'm sure you're right, it's from Taiwan which is known for high heat. Then more money can go into "furniture"

Well, Haraella retrocalla (odorata) is from Taiwan, but at elevation from 500-1500 m. At the lower elevations of its range it no doubt gets significant heat (as well as humidity) in summer. But at the higher elevations, and in winter even at the lower elevations, much less so. Which is what makes it such an adaptable little orchid. It should tolerate heat and humidity fine, but come winter, it can also tolerate significant cold. (Mine goes down to close to freezing in winter and does just fine) So it's truly a non-picky species. Just keep it shady and damp (especially in summer)

When you're looking at temperature range for a plant, you have to figure in not only latitude, but also elevation and seasonal weather patterns.