bifoliate and unifliate cattleya?

[oscar freak]

Found something else now to confound me,the 2 different types of cattleyas have different cultures?and which one do i have?

[katrina]

You have a unifoliate catt in your picture. They are easy to differentiate...bifoliate = 2 leaves and unifoliate= 1. Bi being 2 and uni being 1.

With that said...some bifoliates will pop the occasional 3 leaves and some unis will sometimes pop 2 leaves on a growth. Looking at the majority of the what's on the plant will give you the answer.

They are both cattleyas and you can give them basically the same culture. Some catts (bi or uni) like more or less light, more or less water, cooler or warmer temps...that is more about where they come from and not about the number of leaves.

IME, the tall skinny growths verses the shorter fatter ones are more an indicator how much water. Also, whether the leaves are upright or flat out is a stronger indicator in difference in light levels needed. These are better indicators of preferred culture than number of leaves.

I believe the biggest difference you want to be aware of is that bifoliates have been known to be quite a bit more temperamental about the timing of repotting and doing so at the wrong time can really set the plants back. It's best to repot all cattleyas just as new roots are starting to grow but bis are reputed to being even more sensitive about that timing. It's not that it will kill them but you can really set the plants back for a year or two.

So, don't worry about it...just be sure to time your repots accordingly. BTW - I have repotted at the wrong time...if it means the health of the plant. I'd rather risk setting the plant(s) back from blooming a year or two vs risk rotting the roots if the medium is bad or the potting set up is not a good one for my space.

[oscar freak]

thanks a mill,these orchids can give a person sleepless nights.my leaves are flat out is that now more or less light?at the moment is getting full out sun till exactly midday my verandah is just about perfectly positioned for morning sun and he seems to be doing fine no signs of sunburn at least that i can see.

[katrina]

Most (if not all) cattleya plants are able to take full morning sun and late day sun...it's the strong mid-day sun you want to be careful with.

IME...the upright, skinny leaves (like Brassavola nodosa) can take a good deal more sun than catts w/leaves that are wide and flat out where the sun has more surface area it can hit.

I have a number of cattleya alliance plants (brassavola species, rupic laelia, etc) that I grow in full sun all day long but that's only after they have been properly acclimated. Most don't need or want direct sun during the times when the sun is at it's most intense.

Hang in there...it's a learning process but that's all part of the fun. If I'm unsure of how the plant has previously been grown and/or I don't know how much light it wants...I always caution on the side of lesser light and gradually introduce the plant to more and more light. During the acclimation period, feel the leaves...if they feel hot to the touch the plant is telling you it's getting too much light and it's either reached it's light limits or you just need to go a bit slower w/the acclimation period.

[PaphMadMan]

There are also many hybrids that combine unifoliate and bifoliate Catts in one. If you have a complex hybrid of almost any type you can pretty safely assume it will tolerate a range of normal Cattleya conditions. If you have a species or primary cross you should learn what the specific species needs and not get hung up on unifoliate vs. bifoliate.