c Walkeriana - Growths with no leaves or flowers

[WaterWitchin]

Originally Posted by isurus79

So I guess shadeflower is back?

Good catch Steve!

[Leafmite]

Originally Posted by isurus79

I would cover it as soon as you see a spike forming

That makes sense. Thanks. Will do!

[estación seca]

Alan Koch of Gold Country Orchids said in a talk to our Society that walkerianas will flower spring and fall in Los Angeles (33 degrees North) but only in fall in Sacramento (38.5 degrees North.)

[MateoinLosAngeles]

Huh I just got the same problem with a Walkeriana aborting the stem. It's growing so so nicely that I thought I had actually physically broken it but now I'm wondering about light myself.

Does Walkeriana need a noticeable change in temperature? I keep it indoors but I could place it outside in winter if it can resist upper 40s.

Main reason why I keep it indoors is that I can provide more consistent high light (grow them next to succulents and carnivorous plants) vs. outdoors where I only get western exposure. Indoors I keep humidity at 50-60%, I have them potted in chunky lava rock and marble chips in wood baskets... might be too desiccating in dry Los Angeles :/

[Keysguy]

Seriously- if they bloom in the fall in Brazil, isn't that spring in the Northern hemisphere? Or is it the season which immediately precedes winter?

I ask because mine bloom Feb- now. That's spring where I am.

They grow way up in big trees inland or on scrub brush behind beach dunes (last as reported by Francisco Miranda) so I'm pretty sure the issue is light.

I have mine in shallow wood slat baskets as high up in my shade house as I can get them. They also prefer to be a bit drier in the winter.

[estación seca]

For plants, Spring is Spring based on seasonal light and perhaps weather changes, without regard to the calendar, wherever they are. Spring flowering plants from the Southern Hemisphere brought to the Northern Hemisphere will flower in Spring in the Northern Hemisphere once they become acclimated to the change in seasons. If they were grown from seed in the Northern Hemisphere they will flower in Spring.

Francisco Miranda some years ago told our society that the trees they grow on are deciduous or partially deciduous in Winter. They get higher light intensity in Winter than in Summer.

I haven't contributed much because I don't have time to water this enough. But my first thought on looking at the thread opening photo was, it is not getting enough water when making growths nor buds. This is what happens to Cattleyas when they don't get enough water at that stage. They are very thirsty in growth or bud.

Go back and read what catwalker808 wrote about them, specifically about fall and winter watering:
C walkeriana - Tips for Growing & Blooming

[MateoinLosAngeles]

I have two and I keep them very dry. They go from 10 of light in winter to 14 at height of summer. However, they stay with the high light plants so the DLI is lower but intensity is the same, PPFD-wise they're absolutely in the upper end of the range as I target a 23 DLI for summer in that section. They are next to succulents, carnivorous plants, and other high light shrubs. I've also placed my Brassavola nodosa in this area and I rotate plants and experiment.

Winter I kept them dry as a bone, I actually literally forgot to water them and they went at least a month without anything, but now they're growing aggressively. I'm surprised at the speed.

The first one, which lost the flowering stem, went on to grow a pbulb with leaf, no apparent issues so far.

The second one has a growth that looks like a blooming one, it looks really good and it's already more advanced than the sibling's was. Something that I did differently though, was starting in March, I started to leave some water in the saucer where the pots sit. The water would take 3-5 days to evaporate and some of the deeper roots would touch it. I would see bone-dry medium with some silver roots and some green-moist ones for days. I was doing this because I've been very busy and neglectful of my plants, and last year during the summer months, I noticed I couldn't keep up with Walkeriana's watering needs in such an open medium. So this was an experiment to see if they could take the extra moisture. I figured the time to experiment was now, since not all roots touched the water, any potential root loss would be quickly replaced by the new roots growing in the spring. Was this the happy accident that saved the bloom?

Well, who knows, maybe leaving that water and having the plant drink, pretty much having constant access to water for days instead of getting bone dry, was indeed what saved the second plant's blooming stem.

I think I'm going to risk it and continue with this extra watering until the plant blooms. If I lose the blooming growth then next year I will try the total dark method and place a pail over the plant at night. But since that requires adding a task to my routine, I'm going to see how it responds to just more water and making sure that I turn off all lights at night.

Attaching photos of the plants and growing area. The plant in the square aircone pot is the one that had the busted growth. Definitely things to improve here but I just moved and I shoved all my plants (~100) into two Ikea shelves and haven't gotten to organize them yet!

[isurus79]

It's my experience that the hybrids with loddigesii typically bloom in spring and actual walkeriana bloom in fall/winter.

[MateoinLosAngeles]

Originally Posted by isurus79

It's my experience that the hybrids with loddigesii typically bloom in spring and actual walkeriana bloom in fall/winter.

You know, that growth might actually not be a blooming one Lol but I do trust SVO's labeling. I would be surprised if they tagged a hybrid as a species? C. walkeriana x loddigesii is C. Heathii, is this something that has happened with walkeriana? Heathii being sold as walkeriana?

[isurus79]

Originally Posted by MateoinLosAngeles

I would be surprised if they tagged a hybrid as a species?

Unfortunately, The Chairman is known to have loddigesii in the background.