Virus or burn or normal?

[Troythediver]

Pic of the black removed and cinnamon dusted...only nicked the plant once. When I cleaned up the second oldest growth, the one that is just maturing, I saw a new growth bud starting. Could this Pot. be growing in two different directions?

[Troythediver]

I believe the new growth is the little nub next to the emerging root.

[james mickelso]

Yes. There should be another bud on the next oldest pbulb too. The youngest still growing pbulb should push another bud too.

[Troythediver]

Update. I went out and got some new bark. It wasn't as coarse as I wanted it to be, but at least it is fresh and sterile. As I took the plant out of the old bark I was greeted with atrocious conditions. The bark underneath the surface was crumbling and wet despite the fact that I haven't watered it in over 10 days. As I was doing Maintenance, I removed a significant number of old roots but fortunately the three most recent pbulbs had strong roots still. Unfortunately, a lot had tiny black tips. It was hard to tell what was stuck on bark and what was root death. On balance there was a lot of white root surface area.

On the newest growth I found another black spot and so I stripped off another sheath layer just to be safe. I also cut off two old pbulbs that were completely under the surface. Geez!!

[james mickelso]

This is why cattleyas should be repotted every few years. Orchiata is about the hardest best bark around and lasts the longest. Inorganic lava cinder/gravel/LECCA is a good media but you have to learn how to water it. So many folks get cattleyas and the surface bark looks great only to find rotten bark underneath. Once bark gets thoroughly wet it is difficult to dry out and harbors fungus and molds. Just the nature of it. Good thing you still have good roots. Don't over water the catt. My mantra is to water the roots, not the bark. Water and then let it dry out.

[Troythediver]

Photos of newly repotted potinara Dick Smith.

[Troythediver]

My phone always turns them sideways. Does anyone know how to stop this?

[Troythediver]

I went with a fir bark which I would love to mix with the orchiata if I had any because the fir bark is a bit too small, but I have experience with this stuff and since it is sterile and mostly dust free. It lasts a good two years. My only complaint is that it doesn't dry as fast as I would like. However, it doesn't water log the same way because it is steam sterile instead heat dried.

[james mickelso]

Looks good. Learn to judge the moisture content by the weight of the plant/pot. But use the skewer method along with that for now. It would really help to get some seaweed extract. I get mine from Ray. It works really well.

[Leafmite]

If you notice your medium doesn't dry quickly enough, you could try adding holes to the pot to help with the drying process. Using a seedling mat is also a way to get roots growing. Good luck!