How to pick a blooming plant
 

Hi,
I am trying to learn terminology and also things to watch for when buying cattleya orchids.
1. How many pseudobulbs do you need in a plant for it to bloom?
2. What are "two new leads" and why are those important.
3. On ebay, there are some orchids that are very cheap like under $10 and then look the same that are being asked for $20 for another one. This doesn't make sense to me.
4. What is a "compact grower"?
Sorry if these are stupid questions, but I am trying to learn. Thank you all in advance!

Hi Cinderella,

You do not need any particular number of pseudobulbs for a plant to bloom, though the old bulbs provide support for the new growths. The bulbs do have to be mature, however, or blooming size. Seedlings may have quite a few pseudobulbs but be several years from blooming.

Two new leads means that two new growths (psuedobulbs with leaves) are started and if the plant is mature and well-grown will probably both produce flowers.

Ebay is a place where you have to be very careful buying orchids - I would look here on OB for reliable Ebay dealers before bidding on or buying anything. The difference in price may be due to the fact that one plant is a seedling, is smaller, has better flowers, is being sold by a dealer who is making a living from his plants rather than just selling some personal extras.

A compact grower is a plant that does not get very large - probably stays less than about 12 inches tall.

If you are just getting started it is all the more important that you get good well-established plants from a reliable dealer and not plants that aren't established, are poorly grown, or come from someone who is not reliable.

Like most things "orchid", there is a lot of "it depends" involved.An immature plant with 20 pseudobulbs won't bloom, but a single, mature one can. Count is less of an issue than maturity, but for the most part, a plant will rebound from dividing faster if it has at least 2 or 3 old ones and a new growth.A cattleya plant only blooms once from a growth, so needs to form new ones in order for the "colony" (if you want to think of it that way) to bloom again. New growths are connected to each other via a rhizome, and when they begin growing - sprouting from "eyes" at the base of the old growth - they are variably called new "growth fronts" or "leads". Many times a plant continues time after time by putting up a single one, but in very healthy or mature plants, they can sometime sprout two, giving it a "double lead".There are a myriad of reasons that could be - number of growths, condition of the plant, maturity, one might be a known good breeder while the other isn't, one is plentiful, the other isn't, or one vendor is just greedier than the other.
Just what it sounds like - a hybrid made using smaller species, intend to make them be smaller at maturity. A mature C. dowiana might be 18" tall, but a hybrid made with a sophronitis - giving you a sophrocattleya - might only grow to be 9 or 10" tall.

Hi Cinderella! :waving
I am no expert by any means, but here is what I think:
1. I think this depends on the kind of the plant. I'll let more experienced orchid growers answer this question.
2. "New lead" is a new growth. Many plants will flower only from new growth when it has matured, that's why it's so important to have these new leads.
3. When you look at these ebay listings, check the plant size. Seedlings are usually cheaper than Near Blooming Size (NBS) plants and will take longer to flower, and NBS plants are cheaper than Blooming Size (BS) plants. NBS orchids will take a year or two to flower, while BS plants have usually flowered already.
4. I think "Compact grower" is simply a plant that won't become too large when mature, and will probably be comfortable on your windowsill (well, that's my understanding).
I'm sure tomorrow you will get more detailed and accurate answers from the experts! :goodluck:

Ooops! Ray responded to you as I was typing. Well there you have it - an expert response! :)

Thank you for all that info, especially the confusing abbreviations on Ebay...nbs etc. :)

Thank you Ray for answering in such detail and for dividing my questions into answer sections. You're great! :waving

Thank you Ronald for all your info. I have a lot to learn. I"m going to see on this site where orchid dealers are. If I can't find them, I will post another question. Thanks again.:)

Like others have said:

1. Pseudobulb count is a general guideline and more of a selling point than anything that solidly determines the health and well-being of the orchid. Nor does it solidly determine whether the plant is ready to bloom for you within a year or not.

2. The plant having 2 new leads is a sign that the plant is growing, that's it. It doesn't necessarily mean the plant will survive (ironically)!

A sick plant that is dying but still has the energy to grow can still put out new leads - strangely enough!

3. Look for relative terms that the seller uses to make their sale, such as NBS (near blooming size) and BS (blooming size).

I can't stress enough that these are relative terms, and can mean just about anything depending on what the seller believes those terms mean. Therefore, you must ask them what it means to them, even if they seem begrudgingly reluctant to tell you. You're the customer, and you deserve to know.

4. Buying on Ebay always presents risks as you're not there in person to select a healthy plant. You must depend on the seller to be trustworthy. I can go into detail, but I think you can figure this one out on your own. Or if you have more specific questions, just ask away.

Of special note: Beware of people who are willing to sell you plants that they cannot grow themselves. Particularly if they are plants that belong to the more exotic genera of orchids.

Also be aware that you are a beginner in the hobby, and that some people may be selling plants that have been freshly imported from another country! These newly imported plants can present lots of problems for any level of hobbyist. Again, be alert about this.

5. Since you're not there in person, you can't see how the roots of the plant are.

Most of the times, it is not possible to request the seller on Ebay to post a picture of the plant's root system for you to see, because they have hundreds of potential customers looking at their product and they must keep in mind that some people may not like their plants unpotted before being sold the plant.

Sometimes, the photo that is posted on Ebay is just a representation of the plant that you should expect to get - the photo may not necessarily be of the plant that you will be receiving itself. If this is the case, the sellers might post that information on the page. Should you suspect that the photo is not of the actual plant itself, you have the right to ask for it.

6. Roots are important. The plant's root system is so many things to the plant. Not to neglect the plant's leaves or pseudobulbs - but it is a big deal.

8. Looking at the plant's leaves are important.

* Does the texture of the leaf look off?

* Does it look dehydrated?

* Are there any blemishes that are on the leaves that shouldn't be there, and how bad is it?

* What about the color?

9. Pseudobulbs - are they shriveled? Badly shriveled pseudobulbs can mean a very difficult recovery for even a plant that's as relatively easy to grow as Cattleyas.

10. Calling a plant compact - again - is a relative term.

A plant is a 3 dimensional object. Compact can refer to height, width, etc. It can refer to different components of the plant as well, such as flower size, leaf size, etc.

With this in mind, it's no wonder why you asked about what it means. So in essence, it's not a stupid or silly question, it's 100% valid.

This is a question you may consider asking the seller about, because it is a relative term that has a certain meaning to the seller.

In this case, it's safe to assume that it means the plant will stay under 10" tall.

Cinderella, I have bought a lot of orchids from ebay and have found good and bad vendors. Knowledge is definately power.