Can repot a Catt will prevent it from blooming for a few years?

[babehauss]

Hi Everyone,

Is it possible that when you repot a Cattleyas orchid, it will not bloom for a few years?

Plant 1: This Cattleya orchid was growing so fast and so tight in the plastic pot that I have to repot it every two years. Could this be why it has not bloomed for me?

Plant 2: This Cattleyas orchid has its pseudobulbs climbing upward. It was very good at sending buds until two years ago when I repotted it. Should I wait to repot it this time? It is now in a 8” pot. The plant is too big for my grow space.

I grow my orchids indoors under LED grow lights during the winter month and outdoors during the rest of the year.

Indoors:I have the lights on for 11-12hrs for December and November and then increase one hour per month onwards from January until May when I bring them outside.
The humidity is at 80%-90%
Temperature is approx at 80F during the day and 70F at night.

I fertilize the orchids weakly weekly with MSU during May-August.


Thank you for your advices.

[Roberta]

Repotting can actually be quite beneficial for both growing and blooming, Timing is important for Catts - you need to repot just as the new roots are starting to emerge. Then the plant will quickly establish in its new home. If your plants are that vigorous, you might consider using pots that are a bit larger. Or baskets. Catts do need to dry out between waterings. I have found that they do better after they escape the pot, so don't be in too much of a hurry to "confine" them. Depending on the ancestry of your particular plants, the humidity may be a bit too high - not letting them dry out enough, and temperatures too even. For a lot of orchids, a bigger temperature difference between day and night may help trigger blooming. Do you know the names of your Catts? A look at their ancestry might also give some clues.

[Louis_W]

They can sulk for a while after they get repotted, but it doesn't look like your plants are sulking. If they are stressed by repotting it usually means the plant doesn't bloom, but it also doesn't grow. It looks to me like your plants are growing vigorously.

If that's the case, I doubt the repotting is the problem. Judging by your conditions (they seem good to me) I'm gonna guess that your cattleyas need more intense light. Plants that are not getting enough light often grow and look great but they don't bloom.

[babehauss]

Hi Roberta,
How much temperature variation to trigger blooming?

I would look into adding more LED grow light.
Thanks,

[Roberta]

If outside, it will get whatever Mother Nature provides. Indoors, if you have ambient house temperatures, there is not much you can do. But if it is a controlled environment, you could probably let it get a little cooler at night but the 10 degree drop is likely sufficient. Since it will grow much of the year outside, probably not an issue. More light would be a good place to start. Catts are rather high-light plants.

Do you know the names of the plants?

[babehauss]

They are Cattleya Triana (from Florida) and Blc Oconee Mendehall (shipped from Hawaii many years ago).
These Cattleya orchids are fragrant. Is harder to get the fragrant ones to bloom?
Some threads mentioned shocking them into blooming by leaving them outside past low 40F. I would like to try this next if they don't send out buds this summer.

[Ray]

Define “weakly weekly with MSU fertilizer”:

Which MSU formula?
If from RepotMe, granular or liquid?
How much per gallon?

[TZ-Someplace]

The old nurseries who grew Cattleyas for corsage flowers would have them growing 55-59F in winter and control light duration to time their blooming for the different holidays. The wrong day length even a flash of light during the dark period or streetlights through a window can stop some species, hybrids not so much.

You might want to look at the Chadwick website for articles on the catt. species.

AA Chadwick Articles

[estación seca]

I would consider a 10-hour daylength in winter rather than 12.

[Fairorchids]

And, you should fertilize year round, not just May to Aug.