Cattleya and Laelia hybrids mounted or potted opinion
 

Hello!

I recently purchased a couple of Cats / Laelias and after a month I can tell they have successfully adapted to my cool growing conditions over this time of the year. They're starting to grow roots.

I was considering mounting them, as I had some root rot issues in summer two years ago. The thing is that mounted orchids sometimes makes them grow tougher, but more slowly.

So, I've got

L. jongheana starting to push out a growth.
Laelia Santa Barbara Sunset, growing a spike and some tiny roots.
Laelia tenebrosa x cinnabarina, pushing out roots. This one I think will do well potted, like my purpurata.
Laelia loddigesii x rupiculous hybrid.
Laelia Puppy Love
Cattleya Chrystelle Smith, sending out roots, but no new growth.
Laelia Doris and Byron, doing nothing so far.

I think most of them can tolerate pots, but would like some advice if any of them don't mind or actually require being damp for longer (jongheana, tenebrosa and Chrystelle Smith, maybe). And I'm worried that Santa Barbara Sunset will do better mounted, but don't want to risk the flowering.

I'm all ears! :D

If you pots have large bark and are really well drained, pots (or maybe baskets, better) L. jongheana I have started out mounting, only to find that usually they grow in a different direction than I predicted, off the mount. So those I put in a basket (mount and all) so the roots can "decide" for themselves what they want to do. Still, they are more "mounted" than "potted". L. Santa Barbara Sunset behaves for me more like a L. anceps. Again, it's in a basket, the roots are not particularly confined. L. Puppy Love the same, may be a little more tolerant of pots than the others.

In general, my Catts seem to be happier in baskets with large bark than in pots (they grow slowly until they reach the edge of the pot, then take off when their roots hit air) Mounts are fine for smaller ones, the bigger ones get out of control pretty fast. (I think of baskets as three-dimensional mounts)

It isn't the "mounting or potting" that results in slower growth, it's availability of water.

In order for any plant to add a kilogram of mass, it must absorb and process about 10 grams of fertilizer and about 125 kg of water. Then, if you consider that some 90% of the water absorbed is lost through transpiration, that means that, in addition to that 10 grams of fertilizer, it must take up about 1250-1500 kg of water.

A mounted plant will grow just as fast as a potted plant IF you give it enough water.

Thank you both very much! I'll let things be then with most of them, except for the Laelia Santa Barbara. I prefer to have it mounted, as my anceps are doing well that way. However, what about the spike? Do you think it may be lost?

Unless you are seeing active root growth that says "NOW", I would not mess with it until it's through blooming if possible. You probably will still have new root growth proceeding for another month or two. If you do mount it, the spike will probably be OK though... I have mounted active L. anceps front divisions (recently cut from the mother plant) with blooming spikes and didn't lose the flowers.