C. tenebrosa 'Tokyo' x C. tenebrosa 'Apopka' from Krull-Smith
 

I have several baby tenebrosas, and I decided I didn't want to wait five years to see one bloom (I've never actually seen one in bloom in person), so I found this one on Krull-Smith. He said it is a sibling cross of his two favorite, finest dark tenebrosas, and all the plants that have come from that cross have been very nice. It was spendy, 75 dollars, but when I got it, I see why, and it was worth it. Yes, it has three new growths. The article about tenebrosa by Chadwick says it should grow over the summer, then rest during the winter, and bloom in early spring. I can't wait. It's going to be spectacular.

Excellent choice JS. Sure ------ having some juveniles is great. But getting this big one as extra definitely has its advantage of being able to see flowers sooner! Very soon. Nice.

According to the excellent article about tenebrosa written by Art Chadwick, this one grows in the summer and fall, then rests for a while, and blooms in spring or summer. It has three big new growths, so I expect to see it bloom in less than a year.

One other little quirk of L. tenebrosa... as the growths mature, they very likely may produce sheaths long before blooming. So if you see sheaths during the winter, it's easy to get very excited, then disappointed when they don't do anything for months. So they will test your patience... but they're doing what they do normally. They will tease you and tease you... and still wait until summer to bloom. Consider yourself warned... :lol:

hahaha! True Roberta. Very true. From 1 or 2 other threads, I mentioned in those threads that I just set the bar high these days - as in the : "will believe it when I see it" (the flower opened) condition. Beyond the bud stage.

Definitely! - Having sheaths and buds provide a nice feeling already, so those stages can be enjoyed. But going for the believe when we see it ------ can help overcome anxiety etc hahaha. Orchids are for stress-relief ----- not for anxiety build up hahaha.

I took a pic (this morning) of that tenebrosa I purchased in about January of this year (on that short holiday trip down south, which I wasn't supposed to be bringing something home haha).

It confirms what Roberta is saying ----- the sheath of the new bulb that grew ----- has been doing pretty much nothing inside for quite a long time. Will see what eventually happens with this particular sheath ----- hopefully something heheh. The roots are still growing nicely for this one right now.

I usually repot every plant I get if it is the appropriate time to do so. For this one with new growths starting, now would be the time to repot, but it seems like no matter how careful you are, there's always a setback after repotting. I want to see the blooms on this one in their full glory next summer, and it's potted in bark that doesn't seem soggy, so I'm going to leave it and let it bloom, then next summer when the new growths start growing roots, then I'll repot.

BY then it will probably be about out of room in that pot anyway, so it will be time anyway. But it's happy and growing, and I don't want to do anything that might set it back until I've seen the blooms.

Right. Potting time (New roots) and blooming time are very close. In fact, if I have a plant that is doing both at the same time, I repot anyway... and have not had an issue with blooming. It's all about roots, which may happen at the same time as new growth or not. Ignore everything except the roots when making the decision.

Yes, very true, but the potting mix seems fresh and is a type compatible with my growing style, so I'm not going to bother it right now after it just came from a greenhouse to my back yard. And I was checking just now to see if it needed water, and I realized it actually has 4 new growths. This is quite a plant and worth all 75 dollars I paid for it.

He says he still has a few more if anybody is in the market for a well-bred, large tenebrosa.

JS ----- I think in general - repot when it is an appropriate time. Growing conditions, media, etc are naturally considerations to be made - and also experiences and observations. For my tropical conditions here, and my potting and watering method - I have genuinely and honestly potted catts (and other orchids) at any time of the year - any stage of growth too. No issue seen here.

In January, I did mention from another thread that the tenebrosa flowers wilted quite quickly - surprisingly fast - and that's due to discovering the sheath was actually filled with water (probably rain water or over-head sprinkler water). This was discovered when I had the orchid in the hotel. So I just snipped off the wilted flowers removed all the water from the sheath. I repotted the orchid into scoria on the very night I got home (after the flight home that is). The roots just kept growing after the repot. This was in January - so summer time. But even right now - if there were no sheath - I wouldn't mind demonstrating the removal of the tenebrosa from the media, and then re-planting it again in either the same media, or different media (scoria that is). Any regular catt ----- this includes amethystoglossa (if I had one ------ but haven't got one yet).

But - in general - only pot during times that one is comfortable with. It likely depends on growing conditions, media, etc ----- and own experiences.